


Humbled

by Oilux



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Royalty, Commoner Lance, M/M, Monarchy, Political Drama, Prince Keith, Royalty AU, more to be added later - Freeform, somewhat arranged marriage?, updates every Friday, you'll see - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-20
Updated: 2018-07-10
Packaged: 2019-01-20 11:16:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 16
Words: 32,678
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12431661
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Oilux/pseuds/Oilux
Summary: In the kingdom of Voltron, every one hundred years the royal family has a member marry a commoner, so that they always remember the people they were ruling, and the responsibility they take on.Keith just happens to be the crown prince born in time to uphold this tradition. Many would have considered him lucky to be given the chance to choose who he wanted to marry, to have a chance at love. Keith doesn't view it that way though, it's another burden he's forced to take on.Lance is merely a commoner in the kingdom, going through the days to help support his family and make friends along the way. He doesn't see himself as anything special, certainly not anything special enough to be the one chosen the prince as a new member of the royal family.Fate has a funny way of bringing these two together though.





	1. Responsibility

_ So that we always remember who we are ruling, who we are taking care of, and the responsibility we take on.  _

The inscription had hung above his bed from the moment he was born, from above his cradle to above the soft pillows and blankets as he turned of age. The ceremony had been short and sweet, just like he wanted it to be, just like he asked it to be. There was no fuss that needed to be said, nothing special that came with him turning twenty other than a turn of a century that he never cared for.

It was a stupid tradition, Keith cursed as he turned on his side. The soft silk sheets moved easily with his body, wrapping around him tightly, a comforting constriction around him. As long as he was in bed, he wouldn’t have to think about what he needed to do, wouldn’t have to think about anything else other than how warm and soft his bed was.

“Your  H ighness? It’s almost two in the afternoon, are you  all right ? Your brother, Prince Shiro, has been asking for you.” The  statement was followed by a soft knock at the door, but no one came in. Keith grunted and pulled the blanket over his head. It was so late, but he couldn’t be bothered to actually get up and go about his date.

“I’m fine, tell him I’m busy,” Keith called out, burying further into the  downy pillows. If he stayed in bed for much longer, Shiro would  surely barge into his room, demanding that he got up , but it was a risk he was willing to take if it meant that he didn’t have to leave his bed at the moment.

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Whoever it was moved away  from the door , leaving Keith alone. He rolled over on his back, staring up at his headboard where the words were carved into the wood with  an elegant flourish . The  statement bounced around in his head, echoing there and refusing to leave him be. 

_ So that we always remember who we are ruling, who we are taking care of, and the responsibility we take on.  _

Keith didn’t  _ ask  _ for this responsibility. He didn’t ask to be born into this family , burdened with this duty from the moment of his birth . With a frustrated groan, he rolled over, untangling himself from the sheets as he slipped out of bed. He  shivered as his feet touched the cold stone floor. Summer had just ended,  and autumn was approaching quickly,  already bringing hints of wintertime on its heels with how chilly it had suddenly become within the past few days.

Dressing for the day, Keith ran a hand through his hair , letting out a frustrated sigh . It was thick and sat heavily on his head, tangled into  unruly  knots―a n absolute mess, just as it always was every morning. Keith barely managed to get it looking  somewhat  decent before he  was satisfied with his job, putting  the comb away.

Dressed in finery that was better than most of what his nation ever saw in their lifetime s , Keith brushed imaginary dust from his shoulders, trying to avoid leaving his room,  attempting to delay the inevitable . Shiro was probably waiting for him, though,  which prompted Keith to stop his dilly-dallying and to just get it over with.

It shouldn’t even matter who he married, Keith angrily thought to himself as he finally  headed out of his room and down the hallways . He wasn’t next in line for the throne; he wasn’t anything more than a backup prince who could be used as king if something happened to Shiro, heavens forbid . Keith nodded  at a couple  of  guards as he passed them  and they bowed respectfully in return, before he made his way to the throne room.  By now, Keith had no doubt that Shiro was awaiting his presence.

Sure enough, upon  his  arrival, Keith found Shiro and Allura  in the room , bent over a map of the kingdom, talking in hushed whispers to each other. Keith wondered what could  be the reason for such  secrecy,  since  only the most trusted guards and parts of the royal family were allowed into the throne room. But one could never be too careful,  he supposed.

“They’ve been seen flanking the west border, near the sea. If we’re not careful, they could destroy our fleet, leaving the coast and the people without aid.”  As he spoke,  Shiro gestured vaguely with his  prosthetic hand at what he was talking about . It looked a bit awkward, but he was still getting used to the new limb. “We can’t afford to lose again. People’s  _ lives _ are at stake.”

“I’m quite aware, Shiro.” Allura’s voice was sharp despite still  somehow  retaining the soft, ethereal quality  that it always held. “I know that when we agreed to a marriage you didn’t ask to take on this war, but―“

“Stop  that, love.” Shiro sighed, shaking his head. “It’s nothing to do with you and isn’t at all your fault.  The Galra have been wanting a war with everyone for decades. Even if I wasn’t married to you, I’d still be on your side.” Shiro reached up, tucking a lock of hair behind Allura’s ear  in a tender manner . She was one of the last from her nation, the startling white hair a testament  to  that fact. 

“Did something happen?” Keith stepped forward , allowing for them to recognize his presence in the room and interrupting the couple before they could start kissing. The two were so in love it was almost sickening  to watch. Someone had to keep the two lovebirds under control. “We should plan an attack against the Galra.”

“Keith, good to see you ’re finally awake.” Shiro clapped a hand on his  younger  brother's shoulder. “Nothing happened; we just need to go on the defense.” 

“But they’re expecting that, aren’t they? We could form an attack and they would never see it coming.” Keith expanded the map, the holographic surface manipulated easily under his touch  as he expanded upon what he meant.  “Not even something big; we could do something small,  like  set off a few bombs on the outskirts of the town to cause alarm.”

“That’s a trading post, not a Galra army base.” Allura spoke like she was talking to a child. Keith made absolutely no response, neither denying nor acknowledging the fact that he certainly knew this. Allura’s blue eyes widened when she got no response from Keith―just a serious gaze from the younger man that meant that he knew exactly what he was saying. “Keith, innocent people could be killed!”

“You guys don’t get it; they’ve killed plenty of our people.” Keith crossed his arms over his chest.  Allura opened her mouth to argue, but  Shiro wrapped an arm around  her in a way that stopp ed  her from arguing more with the younger prince,  squeezing her shoulder reassuringly as she took in a deep breath . “They killed almost everyone in your nation!”  Keith continued, unaware and uncaring of the way that Allura flinched at that reminder, slightly turning towards Shiro as if to hide away from that fact. “Thousands, Allura!”

“That doesn’t mean we have to be as bloodthirsty as they are,” Shiro  said abruptly, in an attempt to stop Keith before he went too far. He  pressed a button, and the map disappeared. “We’re not like them, Keith.”

“We won’t win this war if we don’t start changing things and actually attacking ,” Keith ground out, clenching his fist. “I heard that Lotor was patrolling the border with his generals.” He had also heard that Prince Lotor had killed one of his own generals in cold blood, but  decided to leave that part out. “Look, Allura,  I know that  you married my brother because he could help you win―”

“I married Shiro because _I love him_. _Not_ because I expect him to help me win a war.” Allura’s tone was sharp and abrupt, her sky-blue eyes incredibly intense as she jerked her head towards Keith, without fear. She would _not_ allow for Keith to make such accusations about her decisions. Her tone cut Keith off, sending the young prince into silence  for a few moments. The tension in the room had begun to rise. “Blood is not washed away by spilling more, Keith.”

“They were so cruel to your people that nothing will be able to grow there for  _ decades.  _ It’s a wasteland! And you’re telling me that you don’t want some kind of revenge?” Keith threw his hands up  in the air, frustrated . “You can’t just sit on the sidelines and expect to win this war.”

“Keith, have you given  _ any _ thought to your decision?” Shiro  asked before Allura could say  anything, stepping in between the two to prevent the situation from escalating any further. He could feel Allura gently putting her hand on his back in a silent gesture of gratitude for his action, as she leaned her forehead upon his shoulder blades and let out a deep sigh. He would have to check on her later to make sure she was all right.  “It’s an important tradition to our peo―”

“Who cares about who I choose to marry?” Keith snapped as he glared at his older brother . “It shouldn’t matter. It’s not  _ your _ decision; I just get to pick a random person from the crowd and be done with it!”

“This means a lot to our people;  it’s an honored tradition.” Shiro shook his head , letting out a sigh as he closed his eyes . “I’ve given you plenty of time to think about this, but you refuse  to make a decision  because you’ve been thinking too much on this war that doesn’t need you  involved in it . Until you finally  choose someone and uphold the values of our kingdom, I don’t want you present in any of the meetings. ” Keith opened his mouth to protest, but Shiro sent him a serious look that caused the younger prince to go quiet. “ _ None  _ of them, Keith.”

“Y-you…you can’t just bar me from this!”  Keith spluttered in frustration “I’m a part of this kingdom,  and I deserve a say in matters such as these! .”  He felt like a child  who had just been barred from  his parents’ study until  he finished all of his vegetables . Shiro didn’t move an inch , show ing no chance of changing his mind.  Keith angrily clenched his fist once more, letting out a yell of anger as he turned away 

“Keith, you need to really to learn to control your temper.”  Allura spoke up once more, stepping out from behind Shiro to stand next to him, her stance resolute. “For right now, we as a kingdom need you to focus on this― _ not _ on putting more fire on an already inflamed war.”  Keith sent her an angry glare at her words, but she turned to look at Shiro, who nodded at her reassuringly to continue with her words, and she took a deep breath and turned back towards Keith. “You need to take a deep breath and think about what your country needs most from you; not just what’s best at the moment.”

Keith was absolutely livid, glancing towards Shiro with obvious shock on his face.  “You  _ agree _ with this?” Keith gestured wildly with his hands, the anger in his chest burning brightly like the desert sun. In response, Shiro gave a small nod, barely moving  his head, which only made Keith even more furious . “Fine. I see how it is.”

Keith shoved his hands into  his pockets as he angrily stalked away , missing his familiar red jacket. He only wore  it  on occasions where he wasn’t going to be seen by many, and right at  that moment, it would have been perfect.

“Stupid, stupid Shiro,” Keith  mumbled to himself in irritation, almost stomp ing down the hall.  A few Royal  Guards followed soundlessly behind him, making sure no harm fell upon the young prince. Keith disappeared into his room, shedding  his fine silks and donning normal,  average  clothes,  which included his favorite red jacket.

He slipped out of his room, shrugging his jacket a little higher on his shoulders, the collar nearly brushing against the back of his  head l. Barely two steps behind him, he could hear the matching footsteps of the guards, keeping in time with himself , somehow completely in sync with his own rhythm . He slowed down, going from a brisk pace to a steady walk, hands shoved into his pockets.

Keith ducked around a corner, heading to a less populated part of the castle. With a bit of thought, he relaxed his shoulders, trying to seem as casual as possible. The servants around him barely seemed to glance in his direction, but Keith felt their gazes  burn holes through his skin, even through his jacket, which he would often wear like a protective armor against the glances of others.

Everyone wanted him to make this decision―wanted him to just  _ pick someone _ , to  already  tie himself down to for the rest of his life. Keith supposed that, in another life, he could have been lucky.  In another realm, he could choose who he wanted to marry, who he wanted to spend the rest of his time alive  with, but Keith  honestly  didn’t want to choose anyone  right now . His life would have been easier if he had just been put in an arranged marriage, like so many before him. The decision wouldn’t have to be his own, and it would’ve been so painless and simple.

Keith took a quick turn,  his  shoulder bumping against the wall as he turned right. He had  about ten seconds before the guards  would catch up. With the practiced flick of his wrist,  he opened his  window  and slid out , hand moving over with  the  grain of the stone to slide down, hitting the window just hard enough with his hand to send the glass sliding back into place, leaving no trace of his appearance or how he had escaped.

Keith  allowed himself to fall along the wall, reaching out with his hand and catching himself on the ledge;  it had been used so many times by him to escape that   his fingers had worn notches into the stone,  the perfect grips for him . From there, it was just a small drop from the main ledge to the  grass , and in a few steps he was heading outside of the palace grounds,  heading  towards the nearby market.

Normally, he snuck away from his guards at night, but  at that moment, Keith couldn’t be confined inside the stone walls  any longer. He had felt like he was suffocating, struggling to breathe, constricted by responsibility, duty, a fate that he had never asked for. As he got farther and farther away from the palace, Keith felt his shoulders relax.  He did not force this action; he had actually begun to relax, and he  continued on  to find himself in the market, not really looking at the wares ,  but  instead, inspecting the people. He wasn’t a well - known prince,  and as such,  the gazes of his people washed over him like the tide. For he was the sand and they were the water, and the ocean had no care for the sand it was pushing and pulling.


	2. Market Day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was a lot of fun to write.

The morning sun called his name, and Lance rose along with it, the same way he did every morning. He liked to sleep with his bed right underneath his window, so that as he laid down to sleep, he could watch the stars slowly emerge, and that in the morning, the first rays of the sun would shine upon him and wake him up.

The early morning hours was the very brief time that he had to himself. Lance washed his face,  brushed his teeth, and prepared for the day just as he had always done , careful not to disturb the rest of his family.

Being from one of the larger―and, admittedly, slightly poorer―families in the kingdom, Lance hardly ever had a moment to himself. Oftentimes, other family members came over, thus allowing for the responsibilities to be spread out more, so that the younger children in the family wouldn’t have to bear the torch so quickly. Lance didn’t mind one bit; the steady routine that was his life offered him a stability that he loved. Heading into the kitchen, Lance stole a slice of freshly baked bread, its enticing aromas filling the home , and headed out of the house for the day. 

Already ―even with almost all of the kingdom still asleep ― people  had awoken and had started their days. The ir movements and actions revolved around a routine, setting up  their wares and shops. Lance loved how, even though almost anything could be bought online for the right price, markets still existed for those hard - to - find  goods.

“Lance!” a voice called, getting his attention,  which caused Lance to glance over to the source of the sound. Hunk waved frantically, like it was an emergency, but the smile on his face said differently. “Come help me set up.”

“You selling your little contraptions today?” Lance stole an apple from Hunk’s stash, biting into it before Hunk could protest. Hunk’s booth was famous for never having the same invention twice ;  a unique purchase  was always guaranteed . He made good money off of his inventions,  because they were always things that could help people  in their daily lives.

“Yeah! Want to see what I’ve been working on?”  Without waiting for Lance to respond, Hunk pulled out a small black box from under the table. Lance bent over to look closely at it, taking another bite of his apple , hearing that satisfying  _ crunch  _ as his teeth tore into the juicy fruit.

“What’s it do?” Lance touched the side of it. Nothing happened.

“You’ll see later.” Hunk waved off the questioning look that Lance had  in response to his flippant answer . “Are you just going to steal my food or are you going to help me out?”

“You make the best food though,” Lance complained. Well,  he wasn’t  _ really _ complaining . Still, Lance moved to set up the rest of the booth, marveling at some of the contraptions that Hunk had invented. How in the world the other man managed to invent things like this was beyond Lance, but he loved to look at them. 

An hour later, just as the market started to fill and the morning wasn’t as early as before, Hunk and Lance finished, plopping down next to each other and thoroughly worn out. Lance wiped the sweat from his brow with an unhappy sigh. 

“Does all of your stuff have to be so heavy?” Lance lamented, hands behind his head as he tried to relax. “It’ll sell out for sure this time.”

“Thanks man.” Hunk gave Lance a side hug, both of them too tired to get up and fully  embrace  each other.

“You lazy bums.” Pidge slid up to the table, examining the wares. She picked up something that Lance didn’t recognize, twirling it in her hands. “Is this it?” 

“You know it,” Hunk laughed. Lance glanced between the two, but didn’t interrupt. “I tweaked a few things so it should work better now.”

“What is it?” Lance asked, almost leaning his whole body against Hunk’s in an attempt to see what Pidge was holding.

“It’s sort of a locator, but on a wider base. See, it goes by telecommunication, tracking the base points of where it originated from to find out the location of certain people. We could use it to track down the Galra and see where the majority of their bases are, but it’s not that strong yet,” Hunk explained, taking the object from Pidge and showing it to Lance. 

It was a cube, with a small glowing blue button resting on the top. Pidge pressed it with her thumb, and the cube lit up in response. Then , a small holographic map appeared above the cube. Pidge pressed on a portion of the map, and it zoomed in, showing several little red dots.

“It could be used to track Galra communications, but it could also be used to track rebel communications,” Pidge mumbled, her voice  suddenly quiet . She pressed the button on the top of the cube again, and the map  vanished .

“Rebels?” Lance didn’t try to take the cube from her, watching it until it disappeared from his line of sight and into her pocket. “Your brother.”

Pidge nodded, taking out a couple of bills and trying to pay Hunk, who shook his head and refused. Pidge sighed and put the money back in her pocket, moving a couple  of items so she could sit on the edge of the table.

“I knew you’d buy it, and I don’t plan to make another one,” Hunk explained as the trio relaxed. “That technology in the wrong hands could cause a lot of problems.”

“You think you can find Matt with that?” Lance asked  Pidge , fiddling with the loose change in his pocket. The small coins clicked together in a  soft, playful harmony. 

“In recent news, it’s been almost a week since we all had to watch Prince Keith have his ceremony,” Pidge  said abruptly , pulling out her phone and scrolling through the articles.  Lance took that as his cue to shut up; it was obvious that Pidge did not want to continue having this conversation about her brother, and he wouldn’t push it. “If I have to read one more article about  the lucky person  that gets to marry him,”  she continued, a tone of disgust in her voice, “I think I’m going to barf.”

“Let people have their moment.” Lance waved a hand  absentmindedly . “It’s not like he’s going to pick a stranger off the streets, and that’s what everyone’s hoping for. Could you imagine being married to a stranger?” 

“Dude, that’s what happened the last time this came about.” Hunk looked at Lance like he had lost his mind. “The princess literally walked into town and just picked the first person that caught her eye.”

“Granted, that man  turned out to be a nice king ; he didn’t send us into abject poverty,” Pidge argued. “It just seems stupid and impulsive . I don’t get why it’s still a tradition that even needs honoring.”

“Who knows, man.” Lance shook his head. “I’m just really glad I’m not a part of that family . I mean, they could do with my stunning good looks, but seriously, getting married to a stranger? Sounds scary.”

“If Prince Keith came up and picked you out of the blue, you wouldn’t really get a choice,” Pidge pointed out. Her fingers kept dipping into the pocket of her jacket, fiddling with the cube. “If you get picked, make sure you come back to visit us.”

“You guys are dumb.” Lance laughed, fingers running over the well worn coins once more. “Prince Keith probably already has someone in mind . I mean who wouldn’t? He doesn’t have to worry about arranged marriages―”

“Or breaking up any current ones,” Hunk muttered. “What if he chose someone who was already married? We would have to listen to him.”

“I don’t think he’s that mean,” Lance argued. The crown prince had seemed reserved whenever had to be on on a broadcast, or speak to the people, but he didn’t seem cruel. “He’s...it doesn’t even matter what I think of him,  since I’m never going to meet him.”

Hunk chuckled a little, nodding. “Yeah ; imagine Lance as one of our rulers. This whole kingdom would fall to the Galra in a second.”

“You jerk.” Lance elbowed Hunk, but he was smiling. “Yeah, I think I’m content right where I am.”

“Better be.” Pidge sat cross legged on the table, scrolling through news articles through her phone. “Hunk, what’s your newest project?”

“Oh, it’s this.” Hunk waved at the cube that Lance had asked about earlier. “It’s a little different, but it was a lot of fun to work on, you see―"

“Oh, hey guys, I have to go,” Lance  said abruptly as he looked down at the time, quickly standing up. “My mom’s expecting me back soon, and I really don’t want to leave her waiting.”

“Okay! Bye, Lance!” Pidge and Hunk said in unison, almost freakishly in sync with one another. Lance barely held back a laugh at their actions, rising from the booth and walking away from them.

The market was bursting with people at this point ;  one could barely walk forward without bumping into someone else. Lance shoved his hands into his pockets, thinking about everything he needed to get from the market before he came home. The coins in his pocket sat heavily.

“Hey, watch it!” Someone bumped into him, sending him flying to the ground. Lance landed on his hands with an ‘oomph,’ barely managing to keep himself from landing flat on his face.

“Sounds like you’re the one who needs to watch it,” another voice spoke, and a hand landed on Lance’s shoulder,  causing Lance to jerk slightly in shock . “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine.” Lance brushed the dirt from his hands, pushing himself up. The red jacket  was the first thing that caught his attention , the bright color contrasting against the black of  this mysterious stranger’s shirt. “Thanks, man.”

The other nodded, glancing up and down at Lance as though to make sure he was really okay. Lance sighed, shoving his hands into his pockets  once more  and ignoring the slight sting of raw skin against cloth. The stranger seemed uncertain of what to do next, glancing around at the rest of the market with trepidation.

“Do you know the way out of here? I didn’t think this place was so big,” the stranger asked, shoulders hunched. He seemed to be trying to make himself smaller. Lance gave him a smile.

“Sure, where are you trying to go?” Lance started to walk  in the direction of his home , gesturing for the stranger to follow behind him  in the meantime . “I’m Lance.”

“Keith,” the stranger answered, jogging slightly to catch up to Lance. “I was just looking for a way out.”

“Heh, you’re named after the prince.” Lance gave him a smile, getting a light blush from the other.  _ Cute,  _ Lance thought. The slight red on his cheeks contrasted adorably with the pale skin of the stranger. “Well, why don’t you come with me while I shop and you might find what you need?”

Keith looked at him for a moment, before nodding. In that moment, Lance could’ve sworn that he was actually looking at the crown prince―the resemblance that Keith shared with his namesake was uncanny. But it was a silly thought, Lance reasoned. There was no way the crown prince would be scavenging around the market for anything that could easily be given to him as soon as he requested it.

“Other people are named after the prince?” Keith asked, standing so close that Lance could feel hi s body brush against him. 

“Oh sure, I’ve met a lot.” Lance waved a hand  in an absentminded manner, his tone light . “Same with Shiro, and now that there’s Queen Allura, there’s a lot of new baby girls named after her.”

Keith nodded, sticking closer to Lance as  the brown-haired man began to barter for what he needed . What little money he had  with him was quickly used up , and Lance began to barter in favors and items, trading when he could and making do when he couldn’t. The longer he had to barter with people, the angrier Keith seemed to get, his arms crossed tightly over his chest.

“Why do you barter with them? Wouldn’t it just be easier to give them what they ask?” Keith asked as they walked to another stand.  At that abrupt and unsympathetic question,  Lance glanced at him,  but didn’t say anything for a few moments, becoming rather serious.

“One, not everyone is honest ; they’ll try to get more money out of you than you should be spending.” Lance shifted some of his items around, most of them food. “And two, you’re not from around here, are you? A lot of families don’t have much money.”  _ MY family doesn’t have much money, _ Lance wanted to say, but didn’t want to seem like a beggar or as if he was begging for pity, and as such, allowed for the conclusion to be drawn by Keith.

Keith hesitated, but then nodded, arms tightening around himself. Lance picked up another item, a small carton of eggs, and asked how much. He started  to haggle , trying to figure out what he could give  the vendor in exchange, when,  suddenly, Keith pushed his way in front  of Lance and handed over more than enough money.

“Here.” Keith handed the eggs to Lance. When Lance looked at him  in shock , opening his mouth to protest, Keith had already turned away  from him.

Even so, Lance nudged against Keith to prompt him to stop.  “You didn’t have to do that,” Lance  informed him, frowning slightly.

“I know,” Keith responded. “But I wanted to.”

Lance’s soft frown faded into a gentle, genuine smile.   “ Well… thanks.  I appreciate it. ”

“Prince Keith?”

Keith froze, staring down at the floor as everything around them seemed to come to a stop. Everyone turned to the pair, looking at Keith, and it was then that the  murmurs erupted. Keith glanced  behind him , his whole body tense, and Lance looked in the same direction to see royal guards  quickly heading towards them.

“Follow me.” Keith grabbed Lance’s hand, yanking him forward. Lance stumbled, barely having time to  upright himself before Keith was pulling him, and they were running away from the guards, through the vendors,  using the people as a sort of defense to stay hidden from them.

Keith yanked Lance down a corner, pressing him against the wall as the guards went stomping past. Lance opened his mouth, ready to argue, to ask so many things, but Keith instantly covered Lance’s mouth with his hand , preventing him from saying a word.

“If they find us, they might think you’re trying to kidnap me or something,” Keith murmured, body poised to run as another guard walked past them. Keith relaxed slightly, removing his hand but not moving back. “Tell me your name.”

“What?” Lance nearly squeaked out, pushing Keith back. The prince stumbled, but scowled a little. He made no move to come closer to Lance  as the truth finally dawned on him, his eyes widening . “Oh my god, you’re the prince, you’re  _ Prince Keith _ .”

“Lance,” Keith snapped, voice a little louder than he intended it to be. “As the crown prince, I want to know your name.”

Lance shook his head. This had to be  some messed up dream ―that was the only logical explanation for this situation .  There was no way that he just met the Crown Prince, just to have said Crown Prince buy Lance some  _ eggs _ . No one  would  believe a word of this. Keith’s hand landed on his shoulder, and Lance nearly jumped, snapping back into reality.

“Lance, please tell me your name.” Keith glanced out of the small opening of the area they were in,  anxiously .  His voice had taken a different tone―insistent and almost…pleading? Or was Lance simply imagining that?

“ ... Lance McClain,” he finally muttered, not even seeing the point  in this . “What are you even doing here? Shouldn’t you be in the castle doing …uh,  I actually don’t know what you do.”

Keith sent him a glare, and Lance almost laughed at how  _ adorable  _ Keith looked trying to be threatening. He probably would’ve outright laughed, too, if he hadn’t just learned that  _ Keith was the actual Crown Prince. _ Keith glanced out  of  the opening once more, pulling his jacket up a bit more around his shoulders. With a single glance back at Lance, Keith shrugged before stepping out, back into the eye of the public.

“See you around, Lance McClain.” Keith gave  Lance a mock salute, walking towards the guards. Lance stayed hidden until the guards and Keith were no longer in sight.  His legs promptly felt like they were made of jelly, and he couldn’t resist allowing for himself to slide down the wall, his strength leaving him as the weight of all that had happened suddenly hit him all at once. His back to the wall, he sat on the ground, letting out a heavy breath as if he had been holding it for the past few minutes, his head banging against the wall.

No one  would believe that Lance had  just  met the crown prince,  and that, of all things, the crown prince went  _ shopping _ with him. Lance shook his head in pure shock. Heck, he wouldn’t even believe  _ himself _ if he hadn’t just experienced it!

Lance had to admit today―what had started out as a perfectly normal, totally average, run-of-the-mill day―had…certainly taken an unexpected turn.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next month of November is National Novel Writing Month, so I won't be around that much! This will be updated, but there won't be much new content from me.
> 
>  
> 
> Lastly, don't forget to leave a comment below!


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's NaNoWriMo! Wish me luck as I try to write as much as I possibly can. This is my sixth year of competing at it!

Allura was sitting a high backed, well-polished chair when Keith found her. Papers were strewn in front of the young woman, and she rested her head in her hands as she glared down at them. When Keith came closer, the writing was all in another language, one he didn’t recognize. 

“What language is that?” He asked, picking up a paper at random. Allura jumped, hand going over her heart at the sight of Keith. 

“Oh dear, Keith you scared me.” Allura chastised, teaching over and plucking the paper from Keith’s hands. “It’s Galra, but unimportant when we don’t have a translator.”

“Why don’t you find one then?” Keith looked over the papers as Allura started to put them away. They were an unintelligible mess, he couldn’t read them even if he wanted to, but Keith still felt like she was trying to hide them from him. 

“It’s sensitive information.” Allura almost snapped. Keith arched a brow, and she flushed with shame. “I didn’t mean for it to come out like that.”

“It’s fine.” Keith offered. “I didn’t come here to talk about this anyways, I couldn’t find Shiro and I think you’ll handle this better.” Keith took a deep breath. “I made my decision.”

“Keith, that’s wonderful news!” Allura clapped her hands together, beaming with delight. “Who is it? Where have you been hiding them? We can get started on your wedding right away, and they simply must come to stay in the palace right away with us, it’s much too deadly for them to be vulnerable and out in the open-“

“Allura.” Keith cut off his sister in law, but he was smiling. “You don’t know him. He’s just a guy I met.”

“Just a guy you met?” Allura echoes softly, frowning now. Her smile disappeared like it had never been there. “Keith, don’t tell me you really just went and picked a stranger-“

“You and Shiro wanted a decision, and I gave you one.” Keith let his arms cross over his chest, the leather of his red jacket creaking. 

“Not like this, Keith,” Allura argued. “You must think of the consequences of your actions, you don’t even know if this man is already seeing someone, or has his own responsibilities, or is a psychopath!” 

“How is this any different than an arranged marriage? I get to do what everyone else does before me and marry a complete stranger. Not everyone gets the fairy tale ending that you and Shiro got.” Keith sat down in the seat next to where Allura had been sitting. Said woman immediately sat down next to him, looking even more upset than she did a few minutes ago. 

“I’m well aware, Keith,” Allura said softly. She had such a calming presence about her, it was no wonder she was normally in charge of meetings where peace needed to be the answer. “Shiro and I are very lucky and life treated us the way it did, and you have a chance to be as lucky as we are. You could find love.”

“ _ So that we always remember who we are ruling, who we are taking care of, and the responsibility we take on.”  _ Keith quoted with ease. Allura stares at him, either not understanding or choosing not to comment, Keith couldn’t tell. “It’s the oath my family took centuries ago when this tradition started. Shiro’s right, it’s important to the people, and I need to do my job.”

“Not by marrying a stranger!” Allura gripped the armrests of her chair, taking a deep breath. “I know we’ve been pushing you about this, but is this really what you want to do? You could be making a huge mistake.”

“If it's a mistake, I’ll be able to fix it,” Keith said confidently. His fingers drummed along his arm before he moved to fiddle with the purple blade he always kept on himself. 

“If you’re sure, then Shiro and I will trust you.” Allura hesitantly reached out, placing her hand on Keith’s arm. “You are sure about this, aren’t you?”

“As sure as I’m ever going to be.” Keith laughed, but it stuck in his throat, sounding more forced than he wanted it to. “This isn’t something...I don’t know anyone else. I just want this to be over with.”

Allura reached out, offering her hand, letting Keith have the option to bridge the gap between them, slowly sliding his own hand into her own. Allura brought up the console, typing into the machine, never letting go of Keith’s hand all the while. She looked at him, patiently waiting for him to speak.

“What’s his name?” Allura eventually asked, when Keith didn’t speak. Allura gave his hand a reassuring squeeze.

“Lance McClain.”

* * *

Lance leaned heavily against the wall of his home, his cousins surrounding him. It wasn’t easy being the youngest of the group, but he did love the attention and the unconditional love that came with it. At the moment they were surrounding him, all interested to hear his retelling of the same story that Pidge and Hunk had already heard.

“It was really him, Prince Keith.” Lance laughed lightly at some of his cousin’s looks of disbelief. “Really! He bought the groceries for me, you think I bought that all by myself?”

Well, Keith had bought one of the things for him, but certainly not all of it. It wasn’t a complete lie, Keith just hadn’t bought as much as Lance was making it seem like. His oldest cousin, Juan, laughed and rustled Lance’s hair, just like he did when they were little.

“Sure you did, little guy.” Juan laughed harder, bending over with the force of it. 

“I really did!” Lance shoved his cousin away. “You’re all so stupid, do you really not believe me?”

“Nope.” Juan popped the ‘p’ with a loud noise. “This is like the time that you said you met a mermaid.”

“I did! She was really pretty.” Lance sighed dreamily, falling into his memories with ease. Around him, his cousins laughed and started to leave him, dividing into conversations by themselves. There was a tugging at the sleeve of Lance’s green jacket, and when he looked down his little nephew, who was holding hands with his sister. His niece was barely three, she stared up at him with large brown eyes as she sucked her thumb.

“What’s up, little man?” Lance knelt down so he could be eye level with his nephew. The child glanced around carefully, making sure none of the family members were listening in before leaning closer to Lance.

“Did you really meet the prince?” It was asked in a whisper like the child was afraid that he would be overheard by someone. Lance sat on the floor in front of his nephew, almost instantly his niece crawling into his lap the moment that she could. 

“I did, he was nice.” Lance laughed and wrapped his arms around his niece, brushing her hair away from her face. She could almost hide away from them all in those bangs. 

‘Was he nice?” Lance’s nephew pushed his sister slightly, managing to wiggle his way into Lance’s lap as well. 

“He was a bit cold,” Lance said honestly. When his cousins looked at him with those wide eyes, Lance could never bring himself to lie to them. “But then he was nice, a lot nicer than I expecting from the prince.”

“Why wouldn’t he be nice?” Sophie, Lance’s niece, took her thumb out of her mouth to ask the question. “Do we get to live in the castle now?”

“Why would we go live in the palace?” Lance asked with a laugh, kissing her head. She giggled, pushing his face away with small, fat hands. 

“Because you’re friends with the prince!” Sophie screamed in laughter as Lance started tickling her, distracting her from the moment. Her brother, Jesus, not one to be left out of the loop of attention, clamored on Lance’s arms for attention as well.

“What? That eager to get away from me?” Lance tickled them mercilessly, only pulling back when they begged for mercy. They settled into his lap with happy sighs and still the occasional giggle, not bothering to contain themselves.

“Can we get cupcakes, Uncle Lance?” Sophie asked, not moving any further away from him though. Lance laughed, loosening his arms so she could leave if she wanted to.

“Did you ask your mom?” Lance teased, knowing they hadn’t yet. “What did she say?”

“Cupcakes would be so good for dinner,” Jesus complained, lamenting like he had lost the world. “Chocolate!”

“No, Jesus,” Sophie argued, “the white ones!”

“Chocolate!”

“White!”

“Chocolate!”

Lance laughed, bending down and forcing himself between the squabbling siblings. “Babies, you’re both right. Go ask your mother about cupcakes, maybe she’ll get you some.”

With a loud laugh, the siblings abandoned him off the ground, taking off as fast as their stubby legs could carry them. Lance pushed himself off the ground, heading back to his room, just to get away from the noise for a moment.

His family was great, but they were loud and Lance enjoyed the silence every once and awhile. His room was small, smaller than most, but the space was his own, and he never wanted to give it up.

On his walls were posters, hidden by shelves of small knick-knacks and other trinkets he had collected over the years. Lance flopped down on his bed, the blankets fluffing out around him before they settled down. Lance stretched, feeling the softness against his skin. Through the walls, he could hear his family still talking and enjoying their time together. 

For the moment, a nap sounded amazing.

Lance woke to someone knocking at his door, a frantic beat of knuckles against wood that roused him from sleep. Lance stirred, wiping the drool from his chin. A quick glance at the clock next to his bed told him he had been asleep for only an hour. 

“Yeah?” Lance mumbled, wiping the sleep from his eyes. It clung to his lashes and begged for him to go to sleep, but he stumbled to the door to open it, feet tripping over discarded clothing and other items he was too lazy to pick up. 

“Wassup?” Lance mumbled, the words crashing together into one jumbled mess. His cousin, a rail-thin girl named Lucille, stood there, arms wrapped around her middle tightly. “Lulu?”

“Lance, there are guards here, from the palace.” She whispered. The house had fallen down in a hush, something that the house was never known for. “They want to talk to you, did you do something?”

“No, of course not.” He rubbed his cheek, he could feel the indents of his blankets were still there. “Let me see them.”

“They’re in the living room.” She breathed out, following Lance as he walked down the short hall. 

The two guards were large and bulky, taking up more room than they needed to in the living room. Lance’s family was pressed back, most of them standing with their arms crossed in defense as they stared at the guards. To their benefit, the guards looked awkward, like they had never expected to be in the situation they were in. 

“Lance McClain?” One guard asked, moving forward a bit, his knee hitting against the edge of the coffee table.

“Yes?” Lance stood straight, hands balled into fists at his side. “What’s this about?”

“Prince Keith has requested an audience with you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't forget to leave a comment below!


	4. Sun-Kissed Rooms

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So because of NaNoWriMo, this fic is going to be on a small hiatus until November ends, and maybe a little while after that because I am going to be exhausted.

The palace had a high ceiling, and Lance let out a low whistle in appreciation as he looked up at it. The top was covered in stained glass, allowing the afternoon sun to come through, creating a wonderful mosaic of colors against the ground. It was blinding to look directly at, but upon looking down at the floor it was a wonderful imagery of bright, swirling colors that melded together.

“Impressive,” Lance mumbled. The guards glanced back at him but didn’t say anything. They had hardly said anything other than quiet requests of ‘stay close’ and ‘hurry up.’ Lance found them much too easy to ignore.

“Prince Keith should be here shortly.” One of the guards said, and then they were gone. Lance was left alone, to shove his hands into his pocket and look around the room. 

It was obviously meant to greet guests, and Lance felt completely underdressed in sight of all of the colors and the decorations. His shoulders scrunched together as he suddenly felt unwelcome in the palace. Thoughts all circled around in his head, as to why he was there, why he shouldn’t just leave immediately.

Was this all about yesterday? Lance really didn’t think that yesterday would be such a big deal, but apparently, it was, and he had no idea why he couldn’t just leave. Was the prince upset with him? Lance stopped pacing the moment he realized that he was, staring at the wall like it would give him all of his secrets. 

“Do you like it?” A voice asked, and Lance spun to see Prince Keith, with his hands clasped behind his back, staring at him. Keith arched a brow at the shocked look at Lance’s face, but didn’t make any move to come closer.

“Like what?” Lance asked, trying to keep calm. Keith only came close enough to stand next to Lance, looking at the spot that Lance had been looking at. 

On the wall was a painting, depicting a tragedy of some sort. There was fire, a lot of it, people near the bottom of the painting were bent over in agony, some of them on fire as others, the ones attacking, were firing weapons. It was filled with burning, and death, and misery.

“It’s terrible,” Lance said, shaking his head and taking a step back. “What even is it?”

“It’s a painting of Altea and the fall of it.” Keith pulled back when Lance did, moving instead to cross his arms in front of his chest. He didn’t say anything, which just made Lance sigh in frustration. 

“Why am I here?” Lance asked, moving towards the center of the room. Keith just stared at him, like he was trying to find the words he needed but unable to find any. 

“We met in the market the day before yesterday,” Keith said like Lance wouldn’t remember their meeting. “I bought your eggs-”

“I remember.” Lance cut Keith off. “I would think anyone would remember meeting the prince of the nation.”

“It just seemed-” Keith tried again, only to fall silent once more. Keith took a deep breath. “I didn’t mean anything by it.”

“I’m sure you didn’t,” Lance said honestly. “But seriously, why am I here?”

Keith sighed, as though Lance was ruining everything by not waiting for Keith to say what he needed to say at his own pace. Lance crossed his arms, his stature copying Lance’s easily enough. 

“I’m getting to that, okay!” Keith snapped, and Lance opened his mouth to reply, but thought better of it, refusing to sink to that level. “I’m sure you know about this kingdom and the tradition that it’s upholding-”

“Nope,” Lance said simply, cutting Keith off once more. “This is some really elaborate joke, right? Pidge put you up to this, this is totally something she would do.”

“Pidge? Is that a person?” Keith’s brows furrowed in confusion, and Lance could almost say the prince looked cute when he was confused, but he pushed that thought aside. “This isn’t a trick.”

“You expect me to believe that?” Lance scoffed, the words coming out meaner than he intended them to. 

“Look, I have to pick someone okay?” Keith seemed to fall into himself, his shoulders hunching a bit. “I don’t want to make this choice, but you seem nice and I  _ have  _ to pick someone.”

“You want to marry a stranger?” Lance took a step back. This conversation felt out of place in the bright lights of the room. “Look I don’t know what you think I’m going to do, but I can’t marry you.”

“Why not?” Keith asked, more stubborn than anything else. “Are you seeing someone already?”

“No-”

“Is there someone else you had in mind?”

“No, but-”

“Then what is it?”

“You can’t just expect me to marry you!” Lance burst out, throwing his hands in the air. “You just learned my name? What kind of sham marriage would this be?”

“The same as all of the ones before!” Keith snapped back. “The same as all of these stupid marriages, even the arranged marriages. Look, I don’t want this any more than you do, but I can make sure that you don’t ever have to worry about things again. You could visit and see your family, they won’t ever have to worry about having enough money for food-”

“Is this some kind of blackmail?” Lance blurted before he could help it. Keith reeled back like Lance had slapped him. “I don’t-”

“No, you’re right.” Keith ran a hand through his hair, pushing it back from his forehead and fingers tangling in the black locks. “This was stupid. What sane person would agree to something like this? I sure as hell wouldn’t!”

Lance fell silent. Keith laughed, but it sounded hollow and biting like he couldn’t think of anything better to do than laugh. Lance took a long step back, glancing at the door. It would only take a couple steps and he would be outside, and then he could forget all about this encounter. Keith glanced at him, not making any move to stop Lance as he took another step back.

“I’m not going to stop you from leaving.” Keith ended up saying. “You were nice to me in the market, I don’t know why I thought this was something that would work out, but you can go.”

Keith said the words with authority, the way that royalty was meant to. For a moment, Lance could see Keith leading armies, giving speeches, all of the things that royals were meant to do.

Lance cleared his throat, trying hard to think of something to say but his mind coming up empty. Keith wasn’t looking at him, and Lance finally turned, moving to leave and forget all of this happened. He would go home and reassure his family he wasn’t under arrest and then finish his nap-

“Keith! Is that him?” A softer, much more soothing voice joined them. Lance glanced over, seeing Queen Allura rushing into the room, her smile bright on her face. She nudged Keith, none too gently, and rushed over to Lance. “Keith told me all about how he met you!”

She clasped Lance’s hand gently with her own, giving it a small shake. He felt at loss for what to say, completely unlike how he normally felt when talking to someone as pretty as she was. Lance recovered quickly enough, trying to get his tongue to work properly in his mouth.

“It’s a pleasure to meet someone as gorgeous as you,” Lance delivered the line with practiced ease, “but I was just leaving.”

“Leaving?” Allura glanced back at Keith, who was scowling at the ground. “I told Shiro I should have been here to talk to you about this. It’s not an easy thing to address.”

“I was handling it just fine,” Keith muttered. Lance snorted in laughter, bringing his mouth to his face to hide the giggles that threatened to pour out. “I was!”

“You’re setting up a marriage, it’s a delicate situation.” Allura took Lance’s hand once more, leading him further into the castle. “I’m sure he just came out and told you he was expecting you to marry him.”

“Something like that,” Lance conceded. “I was leaving though-”

“Nonsense, you must stay for a little while.” Allura cut off Lance, not even seeming to care that he was still trying to talk. “Keith, tell Shiro I’m taking Lance to the lounge, and then bring us some tea, please?”

A small huff of irritation came from Keith, but then there was nothing, and Lance was being led through the halls of the castle. He was sure he was going to be lost the moment he was dismissed, but then Allura led Lance through another set of doors and he lost his train of thought.

“Now Lance,” Allura started, leading him to sit, “I’m sure Keith has told you about what he wants, if not in the best way.”

“I don’t really want to marry him.” Lance blurted out before he could help it. “He’s got a  _ mullet.” _

Internally, Lance cursed at himself. He couldn’t have said he didn’t know Keith, or that he already loved someone else, but that the main reason he couldn’t marry Keith was because of a haircut. 

“He does,” Allura acknowledged. “Did you know that I was originally promised to Prince Lotor?”

“What?” Lance felt his jaw fall open, he could even think to himself about how comical he must have looked. Even Allura laughed at the confused expression on his face. “But-“

“I was, in a very strange way, very lucky.” Allura nodded her head at Keith, who appeared with a tray of hot tea and pastries. “Thank you, Keith. But yes, when Emperor Zarkon declared war and destroyed Altea, he ruined the marriage contract between his son and myself. It was a last-ditch effort to resolve feelings between my country and his, but I was relieved, to say the least.”

“That must have been hard.” Lance ignored the tea, it had never been his drink, instead plucking a small, delicately wrapped pastry that seemed to be filled with strawberry jam, his favorite. 

“It was, exceptionally.” Allura’s voice was thick with unshed tears before blinked them away from her eyes. “But it led to something I never thought I’d be graced to have. It led me to Shiro and Keith.” 

Keith smiled, a small smile that Lance barely saw before it was gone. Allura reached over, putting her hand over Lance and bringing his attention back to her. 

“Lance, I’m sorry to put you in this situation,” Allura said honestly, “but sometimes there’s no way around it. It’s your decision to make, but if you don’t want to, please let us know immediately. It’s a time-sensitive matter.”

“It is?” Lance glanced at Keith, who was stubbornly staring at the door, ignoring them. “Why?”

“Keith only has six months to make a decision,” Allura said softly. “It’s been three months and you’re the first person that he’s brought to our attention.” 

“What?” Lance laughed. It has to be a joke. “Seriously?”

Keith surged up, and Lance drew back, not expecting the fluid and aggressive movement. Yet Keith didn’t come towards him, he merely left the room, slamming the door after him. Lance winced at the loud sound that echoed through the hollow halls. 

“You must excuse him,” Allura murmured like her quietness would make up for the loudness of Keith, “he’s really not normally like that. I’m sure you know. I know I’m asking a lot of you but Lance you must understand…”

Lance felt his thoughts overtake him as Allura droned on about what responsibilities meant to them, and what an opportunity it was, and all things that Lance couldn’t care about in the moment. It was a sense of foreboding, a shadow falling over his mind, as he felt like his opinion didn’t matter. Already, Allura was talking like he would move in tomorrow, and the more Lance thought of it, the more he felt like he didn’t have a choice. 

“Lance? Are you listening to me?” Allura didn’t sound accusing, she just sounded concerned as Lance turned his attention to her slowly. With a small nod, he pulled back from the Queen.

“Yeah, I was just thinking,” Lance offered, “I made up my mind though.”

“Did you? Oh, that’s wonderful!” Allura clapped her hands together, her smile bright. “What is your decision.”

“I’ll do it.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't forget to leave a comment below!


	5. Tour

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait! Enjoy the chapter!

Keith didn’t talk much, Lance quickly realized as he was forced to spend more time with the prince. There wasn’t much that Keith needed to say that he didn’t already say in his body language, Lance could already see which people Keith liked and which ones he didn’t. Keith was meant to be giving him a tour of the castle, but somehow they had found themselves outside in the garden, staring at bees that bumbled into each other in the pursuit of pollen. 

“You can come here anytime you want.” Keith interrupted Lance’s thoughts with his words. 

“You’ve said that everywhere we’ve gone,” Lance replied, shrugging a little. “Are you really going to ban me from going somewhere?”

Keith scowled, brows knitting together. “No, I’m not. There’s just some places here you might not want to go to yet.”

“Like what?” Lance laughed a little. “You have a secret sex dungeon you don’t want me to know about?”

Keith bristled, if he was a dog his hackles would have raised, but instead he managed to look like a cat who was sprayed with water. Lance laughed, and a bright blush coated Keith’s cheeks. It relieved some of the tension in the air, made it easier to be around each other. 

“Are you sure you want to do this?” Keith asked, breaking the calm revery about them. Lance glanced at him from the corner of his eye but said nothing. “You don’t have to-“

“If you say that I don’t have to one more time, I’m going to smack you,” Lance said, crossing his legs in front of him. The garden needed more comfortable benches. “I know I don’t have to do this.”

“You don’t really want to though.” Keith didn’t ask, it was a statement that required no reply. “It won’t be that bad.”

Lance scoffed, bringing one knee to his chest to hug. There was something Keith was missing, something that even Lance couldn’t think to explain. It was a hollowness in his chest, the feeling that he had missed something that should have always been his. 

“We should check out the rest of the castle before it gets dark,” Keith murmured, so soft Lance almost couldn’t hear him. With a sigh, Lance stood, stretching his arms over his head and feeling his joints crack. A soft sigh of pleasure left him at the feeling. 

“This place is huge,” Lance commented. “Are you really going to be able to show me the whole thing before night?” 

“There’s only a couple places that you need to see right away,” Keith told Lance, walking slower so Lance could walk evenly with him. “By now Shiro and Allura should be eating dinner so we won’t have to worry about that lecture.”

“Something tells me that you get lectured a lot, mullet.” Lance grinned, enjoying the scowl that Keith instantly donned at the nickname. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” Keith muttered. “Come on.”

Keith led the way through winding hallways that one would only be familiar with after years of living there. Lance followed dutifully behind, trying to remember what hallways went where, small details that would prevent him from getting lost later.

“Shiro!” Keith walked into another room, holding the door open for Lance. “Shiro!”

“Keith, calm down.” Shiro was on the other end of the room, and frown weighing down his features. “What’s the emergency?”

“No emergency.” Keith grabbed Lance’s hand, dragging the slimmer male forward despite the sound of protest that Lance let out. “Just want to introduce you to Lance.” 

“Hi.” Lance raised his hand in an awkward wave, untangling the other one from Keith’s own. Keith dropped his hand after a moment of hesitation, but still stood close to Lance. “I’m Lance.”

“Nice to meet you, I’m Shiro.” The King offered his hand to Lance, the mechanical one, and Lance took it only after a moment’s hesitation. He had never seen an animatronic arm in person before, he almost wished he could get Pidge and Hunk in here to tell him more about it. “Keith told me a lot about you,” Shiro said, breaking Lance from his thoughts.

“Did he?” Lance looked at Keith, who had moved away while the two were introduced to talk to someone who looked important. “Kind of hard to believe that.”

“Yeah, Keith doesn’t really talk a lot,” Shiro agreed, “it’s what little words he does say that tell you how he really feels.”

“I’m starting to notice that.” Lance laughed, feeling slightly insecure as he could think of nothing to say. “Who’s he talking to?”

“The general,” Shiro explained, “I told Keith that until he upholding the important traditions of our people, that he couldn’t participate in any of the war efforts.”

Lance felt his shoulders drop. In a way he already knew he was being used, Keith had made it clear when he had proposed the idea. Yet it still hurt, the thought that he was nothing more than a pawn on the chessboard, an unimportant piece that would be discarded in the first few moves. 

“Keith,” Shiro called, snapping Lance out of his thoughts. “Go and show Lance around the palace more. You should be focusing more on how your fiancé is doing than what little developments we’ve made here.”

Keith scowled, cheeks flushing with shame. Lance didn’t argue with Shiro, the King was right, Keith should be giving him more attention, making sure he wanted to stay, not ignoring him while he talked in hushed whispers with the generals. Keith came towards them, gesturing for Lance to follow after him. 

“I’ll be back later,” Keith promised, nodding at Shiro. “Allura said she needed to talk to you, by the way.”

“Come back after you’ve shown Lance everything.” Shiro ignored Keith’s promise, moving away from the pair as they left. “Don’t get into trouble.”

Keith didn’t say anything, leading Lance out of the room and down the hall. Lance followed half a step behind Keith, hiding a sudden yawn behind his hand. All the walking and the tours were getting tiring, and Lance wished for nothing more than for a meal and a nap. 

“This is your room. I had some of the servants air it out so you should be fine to sleep here tonight.” Keith opened a door, it was boring, almost plain looking, while the room inside was anything but. The room had a large, four poster bed, a fireplace, a sitting area, there was another door leading to what was presumably a bathroom, and a large walk-in closet filled with clothes and other accessories. Lance gasped at it, unable to think of anything to say. 

“If you don’t want to stay here tonight because it’s still stuffy, you can stay in my room, but this is your room and where everyone expects you to be.” Keith cleared his throat, seeming awkward in place, put on the spot, unsure how to act. He walked to the other side of the room, heels clicking on the ground as he went to a small door, which blended in with the rest of the wall. 

“This leads to my room, it locks from both sides of the door, so if there’s ever an emergency then you can escape easily.” Keith pushed open the door, revealing a glimpse of red and black curtains, a bedspread that was a dark purple in color. Lance strained to see more, but then Keith shut the door, and the room was shut off. 

“It’s a lot to take on.” Lance ended up saying. This room was his but it didn’t feel like this  _ own.  _ There were none of his decorations, there was none of his random knickknacks, or his soft blankets that his brothers had passed on to him, there was nothing. It didn’t feel like home, it looked like a room that would belong to a royal, someone born of this world, not a kid who would go and hang out with his friends.

“You can decorate it any way you want.” Keith was suddenly standing next to Lance, close enough to allow Lance to feel his body heat but not close enough that they were touching. “Change out all of the curtains, paint, anything you want. Just give the word.”

“Thanks,” Lance said, choking up. His emotions felt like a tidal wave coming at him, refusing to be ignored. He couldn’t tell if he was choked up with happiness or sadness, if the tightness in his chest was because he didn’t feel at home, or anything.

“Lance?” Keith didn’t seem to know what to do, hands clenched into small fists at his side, but he still took a step closer to Lance. The other man shied away from the closeness, arms wrapping around himself and clutching his elbows. 

“I’m fine.” Lance managed out. Keith opened his mouth to say something else, taking a step back and allowing Keith the space he seemed to desperately need. Lance took a couple deep breaths, steadying himself. He refused to break down, not yet.

“What...What do you expect from this marriage?” Lance blurted out, unable to help himself. “What about our wedding night?”

Keith blinked at him, surprised, not saying anything for a long moment. The longer he was silent, the more nervous Lance grew, until Lance wanted to scream. Then Keith moved slightly towards the door, glancing at it like he was planning his escape.

“Nothing will happen that you don’t want to happen.” Keith ran a hand through his hair, lightly tugging on it. “I know this is a lot, but you don’t have to do anything that you don’t want to, we don’t even have to talk to each other after the wedding. It’s whatever you want.”

“That’s supposed to make me feel better?” Lance asked, barking out a laugh. “I’d like to be alone.”

“You didn’t have to agree to this, you know.” Keith snapped, heading towards the door. “I’m sorry that this marriage isn’t going to be everything you want it to be.”

Keith stalked out of the room, slamming the door closed after him. Lance followed, a retort ready to fly from his lips, when the door slammed in his face. Lance leaned his forehead against the door, fingers fumbling with the lock, slamming his fist against it the moment that it was locked. Lance surged away from the door, moving over to the shared door and locking that as well, going as far as to pull a chair forward and put that in the way as well. Lance barely stifled a sob, walking away from the door.

The silence was more overwhelming than being with Keith. Lance backed away from the walls until his knees backed against the bed and he fell onto the soft duvet, feeling it billow around him. Tears, no longer needing to be held back, fell down his cheeks in thin rivers, leaving their hot trails for him to wipe away, only to have them immediately replaced by more tears. Lance curled up on the bed, the duvet offering some comfort but not enough. Lance fell asleep with his face pressed against a silken pillowcase, the tears that refused to stop staining it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't forget to leave a comment below!


	6. Talk to the Cameras

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Keith and Lance are really cute.

The makeup hid the remains of tears easily. Keith stared at Lance, who wouldn’t meet his gaze. He had heard Lance crying for hours until the other man had finally fallen asleep, leaving Keith to stay up half the night wondering why he had to be the way he was. If he had been kinder, a bit more understanding, maybe Lance wouldn’t have cried himself to sleep.

“Your majesty.” The man standing in front of him carefully held a tray of neutral shades of makeup. “Do you mind if I start?”

“Whatever.” Keith shrugged. He glanced over at Lance, just in time to see the other look away from him. The man set to work, applying a quick layer of foundation to Keith’s skin before doing the rest. 

“Keith?” Shiro came up, dressed in all of his fineries. Lance and Keith were both dressed as finely as well, ready for them to give the press conference. “You okay?”

“I’m fine,” Keith answered automatically. The makeup artist finished his work, packing up his supplies and leaving the brothers alone. 

“Keith, you’re making this a lot harder than this needs to be.” Shiro put his hand on Keith’s shoulder. “You have a chance here, you can let Lance leave if he wants.”

Keith glared at his brother, unable to even think of anything to say. Shiro sighed when he saw the stubborn look Keith had taken on, shaking his head. Shiro laid his hand on Keith’s shoulder, squeezing when it seemed like the other was going to try to shrug him off.

“If that’s the case, you go over there and apologize.” Shiro’s voice was an order, refusing to be ignored. “I have no doubt that it was something  _ you  _ did to upset him so greatly. So go and apologize before he goes up there for the press conference. Our people need this marriage, and if you ever hope to be a leader, you need to understand that not every fight is worth it.”

“We didn’t fight,” Keith muttered, shaking his head. 

“Yeah, because that’s the point that I’m trying to make here,” Shiro said sarcastically. “Keith, marriages, what you  _ dragged  _ someone else into, aren’t easy. Do you want Lance to get off on the wrong foot in the marriage?”

“N,.” Keith admitted softly, looking down at his gloved hands. The black leather was soft against his hands, and squeaked when he squeezed his hands closed. Shiro nodded, taking his hand off of Keith’s shoulder, stepping back.

“The press conference will start in five minutes, make sure you have this sorted out by then.” Shiro placed his hands on his hips, walking away from his younger brother. Keith cursed him internally, even though he did feel a little grateful for his brother. He made his way over to his fiance, pretending not to notice how tense Lance grew, how upset he seemed to get just at Keith’s very presence.

“Lance?” Keith said softly, like he was approaching a frightened cat who would bolt at any second. “I’m sorry for snapping at you yesterday.”

Lance pouted, lower lip thrusting out in a way that was just  _ adorable,  _ arms sullenly wrapping around his chest. He seemed to be waiting for something else to be said, but Keith had no idea what. Keith cleared his throat, trying again. 

“You don’t have to do this if you don’t want to. I don’t want you to feel forced. It’s just, as soon as we go on camera that’s it, there’s no turning back. Everyone’s going to know that we’re engaged.” Keith fiddled with his jacket, the expensive material confining against his skin. “Are you okay with that?”

“You’re an idiot.” Lance rolled his eyes and Keith frowned at the insult. “You’re seriously trying to kick me out after proposing to me?”

“That’s not it at all!” Keith defended. “Look, I’m trying to be nice here.”

“Stop trying then, it’s insulting.” Lance stood from his seat, brushing imaginary dust from his jacket. 

“Fine.” Keith shoved his hands into his pockets, his fingers brushing against warm metal. The wedding ring had been his mother’s, nothing fancy but it was his, waiting to be given to Lance. “The conference is about to start, if you walk out there we will be going through this marriage. Consider this your last chance to leave.”

Keith walked over to the door, taking a deep, shuddering breath. Allura was right, this was a stupid idea. He should have handled this better, he should have just  _ been better _ . Keith glanced once more back at Lance, his heart aching at the panicked expression falling over the other man’s features. Keith sighed, offering his hand to Lance. 

“Better start the act now. Other couples do this their entire lives, starting five minutes earlier than planned won’t ruin anything.” Keith said, waiting. It felt like the world was pressing on his shoulders, waiting to see what Lance would decide. But then a warm hand slid into his, and some of the world lifted off of Keith’s shoulders. 

“Come on, mullet.” Lance pushed the door open, immediately smiling as the clicks of cameras greeted them. “You think you could keep me away from all of these cameras?” 

Lance led them through the doors, the camera’s flashing at a mile a minute, causing Keith’s eyes to water. Lance tugged him through the door, a bright smile on his face, seeming to love the attention. Keith blinked the tears that budded from his eyes at the glare from the camera, allowing Lance to lead him to the stage where Allura and Shiro were already seated.

“Your highness, your highness!” A couple reporters, bounced up and down at the front, all eagerly trying to get the attention of the royals. 

“Please, be seated and remain calm.” Shiro leaned forward to say into the microphone, his free hand on the table, linked with Allura’s own. Lance had let go of Keith’s hand the moment they were sitting at the table, out of sight from the reporters. At the king's words, the reporters calmed down, sitting quietly amongst themselves, quietly murmuring.

“Now, since you’re all here and I’m sure this is going to be broadcasted live, if not almost immediately,” Shiro paused to look over at some of the cameras that were floating near to them, looking at the glowing red dots that signalled they were on, “let’s get down to business. This is Lance McClain, Prince Keith’s fiance. Please treat him with the same respect and dignity that you would treat the rest of us.”

As if summoning the cameras once more, the shuttering clicks of them going off once more in rapid fire. Keith winced slightly, ducking his head and allowing his hair to hide his face. It wasn’t long before the cameras were gone, just as they had appeared. Keith’s hands balled into fists against his knees, and he pressed them down firmly, preventing them from shaking. 

“Prince Lance!” Lance jumped at being addressed as such a thing, turning to look over at the reporter who smiled once he had his attention. “How did you and Prince Keith meet?”

“Oh, we met in the market.” Lance leaned forward to the microphone, his lips nearly brushing it. In the corner of his eye, he could see Keith’s shoulders tense. “It wasn’t anything special, but then again, every moment spent with me is a special one.”

The crowd laughed, finding obvious delight in the humor of their new prince. Lance laughed as well, glancing to the side to see even Shiro and Allura sharing a smile. Another reporter stood up, raising her hand like a child in school. 

“Prince Lance, your affair with Prince Keith has been a quiet affair, in fact, no one had even a hint that Prince Keith was going to settle down.” The woman stopped, and Lance started at her, waiting for her to continue. When she didn’t, he cleared his throat.

“I’m sorry, but is there a question there?” Lance glanced at Keith, who was staring hard at the table below him. 

“How were you able to keep your relationship such a secret?” The woman arched a brow. Her whole body screamed dominance, like she was about to take down a bully. It made her hard to ignore, that was for sure. 

“I don’t really think that’s any of your business.” Keith snapped, his voice tense. Lance looked over at him, hesitantly reaching out under the table. Keith didn’t seem to notice, Lance pulled his hand back to his lap.

“What Keith means,” Lance said softly, “is that if we gave up all our secrets, how would we still get some privacy on dates?”

The crowd once more laughed, whatever tension that had entered the room dissipated just as quickly. Keith glared down at the table, looking like he was trying to burn a hole in it from the force of his stare alone.

“Keith?” Lance murmured, leaning a bit closer to Keith. The camera’s flashed, getting a snapshot of the couple, and Keith flinched at them. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine.” Keith bit out. “Just get this over with.”

“Prince Keith!” Someone stood up, a man this time, holding his pen out before him like a sword. Keith glanced up, taking a deep breath to steel himself, like the knight facing the dragon. “Are you excited about your upcoming nuptials? We have word that several other royal members, including Prince Lotor, are upset that you’re going to marry a simple commoner.”

Keith bristled, not for the first time reminding Lance of a cat, his hackles raised. Shiro shifted next to Lance, as if ready to make a move, but Lance moved first, shifting closer to Keith and putting his hand over the prince’s own. Keith jumped slightly at the contact, glancing at Lance in the corner of his eye, but he didn’t move away.

“The traditions of our country are very important to me, and to my brother, I know that.” Keith started, hesitating slightly before every word as he carefully considered them. “This wasn’t an easy decision, I took the time and the care to think about what I wanted, who I wanted to spend the rest of my life with. Even this old, outdated tradition in my opinion, I still feel it is my duty to uphold it.”

The reporter opened his mouth to say something, but Keith held his free hand up, silencing the reporter. Slowly, gloved fingers laced with Lance’s own, the leather creaking slightly as it bent.

“I am happy in my decision, and honestly Prince Lotor can suck it. I have no idea why he put in an offer for marriage for me when he knew I would have to uphold this tradition.” Keith scoffed, rising, hand still linked with Lance’s own. “I’m leaving, are you going to stay?”

Lance started, not expecting to be asked, but moved to rise all the same. As much as he loved the cameras and attention, being in front of them putting on a show was quite exhausting. Keith led him off the stage, and out of the room, ignoring the clicks of cameras and calls from reporters. As soon as the door clicked behind them and they were alone, Keith let go of Lance’s hand. 

“Thanks.” Keith muttered, looking anywhere but at Lance. “I’m going to get lunch.”

Just like that, Lance watched as Keith turned away, a small blush on the others cheek. Lance waited there, awkwardly shifting in the finer clothes that he was wearing. Lance was sure he would never get used to these kinds of clothes. 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had a really rough two weeks, any comments left below are greatly appreciated.


	7. Company Comes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey there! Sorry I forgot to update last week, and then this week I've been as sick as a freaking dog. I haven't been this sick since high school...

_ “It has been seen that the upcoming Prince Lance seems to be quite in love.” The newscaster turned, showing a picture of Keith and Lance, still holding hands, entering the press conference. Keith was turned towards Lance with a small smile, while Lance was facing the cameras, beaming with excitement. “Prince Keith is here showing a surprising amount of emotion, the stoic prince giving his fiancé a small smile—“ _

Lance pushed the power button on the remote, and the television turned off. The small button nearly cracked under the force Lance put on it, but at the last second he eased the pressure and allowed it to be free. 

He had discovered many things about his room while he was staying in it. For one there was a television embedded in the wall, and two said walls were paper thin. Probably to prevent cheating, as Lance could often hear every movement Keith was making. At the moment, Keith was either taking a nap (something Keith didn’t ever seem to do) or he wasn’t in his room, as it was completely silent. Lance often heard Keith doing random things, seeming to pace a lot. Keith never seemed to sleep either, Lance had only been at the castle for a week and almost every night he would wake up because Keith was doing something random, or just walking from one end of his room to the other. 

A knock at his door interrupted Lance from his thoughts, and he rose to answer it. Probably the worst thing about this situation was the expectation to wear finer clothes all of the time. It was only in his room that he wasn’t expected to wear finer clothes, and at the moment he was dressed in a long blue shirt and sweatpants. Lance sighed and opened the door to his room. 

“Prince Lance, you have two visitors who would not leave us alone.” The guard, a rather short woman, said to him. “They said to tell you their names are Hunk and Pidge. Probably aliases, should I tell them to leave?”

“No!” Lance almost collapsed in relief at the idea of  _ company.  _ He couldn’t stop the smile from spreading on his face if he tried. “Please bring them up, they’re my friends.”

The guard gave a short bow, brow furrowed in confusion as she left Lace standing in the doorway. He didn’t bother to fix anything, the bed was a mess of soft blankets and pillows, already messy despite only living there for a week. 

“Dude, everyone gets to live in nothing but your bedroom is bigger than my house.” Pidge snarked, the first thing she said when she entered. Lance laughed, running forward and embracing his two friends. They smelled of dirt and fresh air. 

“Oh man, it’s so nice to see someone normal.” Lance ruffled Pidge’s hair as soon as he pulled back. The younger girl huffed and fixed it, glaring at Lance. Yet she smiled, showing she wasn’t too upset. 

“We saw the press conference released last night. Figured you could use some company.” Hunk laid a heavy hand on Lance’s shoulder, squeezing gently. Lance sighed, slightly leaning into the touch. 

“Yeah, it’s been a rough week.” Lance didn’t want to sugarcoat things. He rubbed the back of his head, feeling his hair start to get greasy. “You saw the press conference?”

“Yeah. How’d you look so in love with him?” Pidge asked, going to sit in Lance’s favorite cushioned armchair, sitting crossed legged in it. 

“What do you mean?” Lance sat down on the couch, mulling over the question. Had he seemed in love with Keith? They were selling a story, Lance just wanted to make sure they sold it well.

“Do you guys want to play a game? I got everything here.” Lance turned to the wall, opening the small cabinet embedded into it. Inside were a few ancient gaming systems—Lance figured they must have been forgotten about—and a few things that connected to the television. Lance was still trying to figure out what it all was, but Pidge probably knew. She looked over his shoulder, having moved silently like a cat, to see the collection. Hunk had moved to admiring the bathroom.

“You have a StationPlay? The original?” She pushed Lance out of the way, getting a laugh from the taller man. “We gotta play, what games do you have?”

Lance bent down to open the door, just as a muffled slam was heard from Keith’s room. All three of them looked up, staring apprehensively at the wall like it would crack and reveal themselves. Pidge opened her mouth and Lance’s hand covered it, silencing whatever she had to say. Like a true little sister, she immediately licked his hand, getting a grunt of distaste from Lance. 

“...you at the conference. I almost forgot how much you don’t like those.” Shiro’s voice came through the wall, if a bit muffled. Easily, the trio could hear two sets of footsteps, walking across the room. 

“I never have.” Keith’s voice returned, completely monotonous. Lance had never heard it so flat before. 

“Lance seemed to. He actually really seemed to like you.” Shiro’s voice came through the wall. Lance felt heat rise in his cheeks at the sound of his own name but didn’t say anything.

“Okay,” Keith replied. It sounded awkward like he had no idea what he should be saying in a reply. “He’s a nice guy.”

“So, was it you or him that came up with that whole, ‘we’ve been secretly dating for a while’ thing?” There was a sound of something hitting the ground. Lance wished that he could see into the other room to see what was going on.

“He just did that on his own.” Warmth bloomed in Lance’s chest. Keith almost sounded  _ proud  _ of him. Like he hadn’t expected Lance to handle being in front of cameras as well as he did. 

“Look, Keith.” Shiro’s voice was suddenly serious, the same one Lance’s older siblings would use when they were trying to be nice to him, to show they would listen. “Are you okay? It’s not really how I imagined-”

“How did you imagine this?” Keith interrupted. He didn’t sound upset, he just sounded curious. “Did you imagine the big, frivolous wedding too?” Okay, Lance admitted that sounded sarcastic.

“Don’t snap at me,” Shiro said, still in the same tone of voice. “I’m sorry I had to force you into this.”

“What?” Keith and Lance almost spoke at the same time, but it was Pidge who stopped Lance, slapping her hand over Lance’s mouth. “Shiro, you didn’t force me into this.”

“Lotor sent another message, telling us he’d still put an offer for your hand if this peasant marriage, as he called it, didn’t work out.” Shiro must have walked closer to the wall, his voice was clearer. It was obvious that he was changing the subject, but it seemed okay, Keith’s snort could be heard easily through the wall. 

“What happened to him being promised to Allura? He wants a fucking harem.” Keith’s voice was muffled for a moment like he had gone somewhere in his room that was blocked. 

“Lotor has always been interested in you. You know that.” Shiro sighed. “For the sake of everything, and hopefully calming down the war, I’m inviting him to the party next week.”

There was sputtering like Keith was trying to figure out what to say but couldn’t manage it. Lance glanced at Pidge, she met his gaze, mouthing her question so they wouldn’t be heard. 

_ Lotor?  _ Pidge tilted her head to the side, glasses slightly askew.  _ Galra Prince,  _ Lance mouthed back, turning back to the wall. 

“You can’t seriously invite that ass. Shiro, I don’t want to be anywhere near him. I don’t want Lance anywhere near him either.” Keith snapped. There was a thunk like something hit the wall, Lance flinched at the sound it made. 

“You just don’t like him because he hit on you and hasn’t stopped since you rejected him.” Shiro almost sounded like he was laughing. “Seriously, Keith, I know you don’t like him but you have to make an effort to get along with him. If only for the sake of ending this war.”

“I didn’t sign us up for this war by marrying Allura!” Keith snapped, the room growing deathly silent. Lance was afraid to even breathe, it might be heard by the two arguing brothers. “Shiro-”

“No, you make a fair point.” Shiro’s voice was strained, even Lance could tell. “I’ll give you time to think this over.”

“Shiro, wait.”

The door slammed closed, the shared door that Keith and Lance had vibrating with the force of it. Lance sucked in a breath of air, waiting to see If Keith would stay or leave, or if it was too late for the trio to reveal themselves. Yet before he could, another slam was heard, something was thrown against the wall. Lance watched the door shake once more with the force of whatever was thrown.

“God _damnit ,” _Keith muttered. “Can’t fucking do anything right, can you Keith. Can’t even fucking talk to your brother right.”

Shuffling was heard, before the door once more opened and closed, Keith leaving his room as quickly as he had entered it. Lance tentatively walked over to the shared door, attempting to turn the knob, but it was locked, and only slipped under his skin. 

“Is he normally that angsty?” Pidge asked, her voice quiet as she spoke. Lance shrugged, shoulders falling gracefully as he lightly smiled.

“Yeah, a little.” Lance returned. He looked around for Hunk, only the other man wasn’t there, he had seemed to disappear entirely. “Um, dude, where’s Hunk?”

“Man, this bathroom is sweet!” Hunk emerged from the restroom, holding small, decorative soaps in his hands. They were carved in the shapes of roses. “Everything smells so nice in there!”

“That is the point of a bathroom, to freshen up.” Pidge snarked. She glanced at Lance, brows furrowing slightly as she considered saying something, but then she turned back to the wall, pulling out an old video game. It was so old that she had to actually blow dust away from it before she put it in.

“Hunk, wanna make a bet?” Lance could have sworn he saw her glasses glint in the light. Hunk walked forward, plopping down heavily on the couch. Pidge smirked, staring up the gaming system.

“I bet I can beat you on this level. If I win you have to eat that soap.”

“Okay, but if I win you have to eat it.”

“You are so on.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed! Let me know, of course!


	8. Fight Me

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is my favorite I've written so far. Also! Sacanime is here! It's literally starting today and going through Sunday. I get to work it, it's a lot of fun! I also get to cosplay Lance with my friend who's cosplaying Keith!

Lance pulled at the collar of his shirt, the skin of his throat growing tender and red from the constant rub of fabric brushing against it. It was annoying, having such a high collared shirt that pressed against his Adam's apple as he breathed and talked. It was one of his most hated shirts, Lance vowed to never wear it again after this.

“Excuse me.” Lance grabbed a random man walking past him, he was carrying fresh sheets, they smelled of lilacs. “Can you tell me where Keith is?”

“Prince Keith?” The man asked, his shiny name tag declaring that his name was Percy. Lance almost wanted to say that there wasn’t any other Keith that he was looking for, or even knew at the moment. “Right now, he’s normally training with the other guards.”

Lance thanked him, turning away from Percy and rushing down the hall. It was awkward to talk to people, they stared at him like he was a celebrity, like he was something more than a simple farm boy who had done nothing before. Lance used to imagine that as a kid, he would be a celebrity, that people would want to meet him for his autograph, to get to know him, but as it happened to him, he found that he didn’t like it as much as he thought he would.

It wasn’t until he was once more wandering around that he realized he had no idea where the guards normally trained. Lance sighed, reaching up to pinch the bridge of his nose as he started looking for where the guards were training.

It wasn’t the place he was expecting. Lance found the training area on the third floor of the castle. It was packed with guards all doing different things, some of them battling against each other, some of them battling robots.

Keith was easy to spot, he was the only one wearing a spot of color among the black and white of guard uniforms. His battle armor was red, and he grunted with effort as he took on multiple other guards at once. Keith didn’t even seem to notice where he was, lost in the moment as he battled against others. 

Lance felt out of place as he watched the battle like he had intruded on something private that he wasn’t meant to watch. Keith swiped at one with his sword, dropping down and kicking out the feet from another one. Before Lance could blink, Keith was standing over the fallen bodies of his comrades, pulling off his helmet. The sweat dripped from his brow, rolling down the contours of his cheeks as he shook his bangs away from his head. 

“Wooo! Go Keith!” Lance cheered, clapping. No one joined him, instead looking at him with a surprised glance as he stopped clapping rather awkwardly. “What?”

“Lance?” Keith jogged forward, wiping the sweat from his brow as he came forward. “What’re you doing here?”

“Looking for you,” Lance replied honestly, but then realized he had no other explanation other than just wanting to see Keith. “Um, do you normally train?”

“Yes?” Keith seemed entirely confused by the fact Lance was even in his presence. “Did you need something?”

“Um, not really.” Lance felt awkward like he had intruded on something he shouldn’t have. Did Keith not want him here? Lance wrapped an arm around his middle, another guard came up and handed Keith a towel so that he could wipe his face. 

“Okay.” Keith gave him another curious look but didn’t say anything else, instead moving towards the edge of the training zone. Lance followed him, glancing at the exit. Keith obviously didn’t want him there, he would have to find something else to do.

“So, samurai, do you like do this a lot?” Lance gestured over at the others training. People were obviously listening in on them, but trying not to see too obvious. 

“Samurai? What happened to mullet?” Keith asked sarcastically, draping the damp towel over his shoulders. “I do this a lot.”

“I can tell,” Lance said, flushing at his own words but trying to push that away. “What are you training for?”

“You never know if there’s ever going to be a time for war.” Keith returned, not even seeming to notice Lance’s blush. “Don’t worry, you don’t have to-”

“Don’t have to what? Fight against the Galra?” Lance asked, cutting Keith off. Once more, Keith scowled, it was so regular on his features that Lance hardly even noticed it. “I know how to fight.”

“That’s not what I’m saying. A lot of people aren’t jumping at the chance to join our army and get killed in battle.” Keith snapped. “So, I’m just saying that you don’t have to, you probably wouldn’t last a moment in an actual battle anyways.”

“Excuse me?” Lance almost felt like he had been slapped. “I can take you and your mullet any day.”

“Oh yeah?” Keith was so much closer than Lance remembered him being, he could smell the sweat and hard work radiating off the other man. “Prove it.”

“With pleasure.” Lance pushed Keith away, grabbing another sword as well. It felt heavy and awkward in his hands, the grip too wide to sit comfortably in his hand.

“That’s the one you’re picking?” Keith scoffed, pulling the large sword out of Lance’s hand. “This one will work better for you.”

Keith handed him another sword, this one sitting much more comfortably in his hand. Upon closer inspection, it was a bit different from Keith’s sword, but it felt like Lance imagined a sword should feel like, the way he had heard others describe so much before, an extension of his arm.

“Let’s go, I’ll take it easy on you.” Keith taunted, leading Lance to a smaller battle area. Others parted out of their way, surrounding the small arena. 

“I’ll show you who’s boss.” Lance scoffed, waiting until they moved into the area before he surged forward, moving in an attempt to strike. Keith batted him away easily, jumping back. Lance swerved, attempting to strike Keith’s back with his momentum, but the other was just out of his reach.

“Good try.” Keith laughed, actually seeming to enjoy himself as they battled. “I think you can do better than that.”

Lance’s heart raced, and while he felt anger at the battle, he also felt the excitement. It was obvious why Keith wanted to do this almost every day. Keith turned, clashing his sword against Lance’s own, the force of it almost knocking Lance’s sword right out of his hand. 

“I don’t see you doing so well.” Lance teased, bringing his sword up in an arc. It hit against Keith’s shoulder with a resounding  _ clash,  _ if the armor hadn’t been there, there probably would have been some broken bones.

Lance leaned forward to examine the small dent in the armor, nothing more than a nick, but it was still there. “Shit, are you okay?”

Keith didn’t reply, pushing forward and hitting against Lance with his other shoulder. Lance stumbled back, the air nearly knocked out of him at the force of it. He coughed, barely able to regain his footing. 

“Didn’t think you’d be brought down so easily as a little hit.” Keith teased, but he was panting. Earlier exhaustion and the blow had weakened him, Lance could see that. Lance smirked a little, his breath returning to him before he rushed forward again.

“You’re wrong.” Lance almost laughed as he dropped to avoid the swing of Keith’s sword. It was slow, Lance could see it fly above his head. It suddenly occurred to him, Keith was taking it easy on him. His lack of armor and skills made sense for it, but it still made anger rise in his chest. How dare Keith treat him like he couldn’t do even this.

Still crouched on the ground, Lance used that to his advantage, hooking a foot around Keith’s ankle and yanking him forward. Keith stumbled, trying to regain his footing, but then Lance swelled up, like a wave about to crash into the shore, and hurled himself against Keith’s chest.

They landed together with a crash, Keith’s armor bruising Lance’s skin. The fine clothes were truly not made to be used in any kind of battles like this. They landed in a pile of limbs, with Lance on top of Keith, pinning the other man down. Keith looked up at him in surprise, his hair sticking to his brows, violet eyes wide.

“How’s that?” Lance asked, laughing slightly. His heart rushed with adrenaline, making him feel like he conquered the planet, not won a skirmish that Keith probably allowed him to win. Lance’s hands found Keith’s shoulders, and upon realizing how close that he was to the other man, Lance jumped up, his cheeks reddening with more than just exertion. 

“That was fun.” Lance ended up saying, picking up his sword. 

“Yeah, fun.” Keith looked up at Lance, picking himself up from the ground. Around them, everyone had dispersed, leaving the two of them standing alone. Keith couldn’t seem to get rid of the small smile that was resting on his cheeks, just a light smile that changed his whole face. 

“Have you trained before?” Keith asked, taking Lance’s arm to lead him towards the edge of the training room. He started shedding off the heavier parts of his armor, handing them off to a random person who happened to be near him. The shirt he was wearing underneath was absolutely drenched in sweat, showing off the contours of abs and muscles that Lance hadn’t seen before in Keith’s finery.

“I used to shoot with my uncle’s…” Lance suddenly stopped, the word escaping him. “I can’t think of the word. You know, the thing.” He made a movement with his hand, making it into a gun and pretending to fire it.

“A gun?” Keith offered, and Lance nodded enthusiastically, grinning.

“Yeah, that.” Lance really hoped he wouldn’t forget the word later. “Used to fire his gun all the time. He said I was really good at it.”

“Oh yeah?” Keith asked, looking over at Lance, heading through a doorway. Before Lance could follow, Keith blocked his way, one hand on either side of the doorway. “I’m going to change unless you want to join?”

Lance took a step back, trying to stutter out a denial, but the words seemed to escape him. Keith laughed, actually laughed, the sound of it made Lance forget why he had even been trying to talk in the first place. Keith shook his head, moving to close the door when Lance didn’t step in, but the invitation was still there.

“I’ll talk to you later,” Keith said, closing the door. Lance didn’t hear the click of the lock, but he still pulled back, moving instead to walk down the hall. He didn’t glance over his shoulder, not once, not at all hoping that door would reopen for him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also, don't forget to leave a comment below!


	9. Guess So

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, Sacanime was a bit of a bust. Don't really think I want to return next year for it. I got a really bad virus, still had to work all day Sunday at it, and just now on Friday I'm starting to feel normal (after 5 days of pure rest and antibiotics, though I still have bad ear infections in both ears).
> 
> The next chapter is one of my favorites.

Keith tried to stretch his arms above his head, but the restricting fabric halted his movements. The ceremonial ball had hardly even started, and Keith already wished for it to end and leave him alone. Lance had yet to make an appearance, but neither had Allura, even with Shiro standing next to Keith.

“Keith, remember that the whole point of this is to make allies, not end them.” Shiro nudged his brother to dissuade his stretching. Keith gave Shiro a look, but it faded almost immediately when he saw more guests arriving.

“I just don’t see why we have to greet every person who comes here. They’re here to celebrate my upcoming marriage.” Keith muttered, still plastering a fake smile on his face when someone drew close. Keith greeted them with a simple bow, almost forgetting these people didn’t like to be touched. 

“That doesn’t mean we can’t use this time to help everyone with their alliances,” Shiro said. “Lance and Allura are going to come soon, just relax until he gets here.”

“I hate you so much,” Keith muttered, putting on another fake smile as he was greeted by someone else. This one a rather short princess, who seemed much too young to be at a party that served alcohol, who wrapped her arms around Keith’s waist in greeting.

“Well, aren’t you just...sweet.” Keith gave her awkward pats on her head, not certain how to handle the touch. Luckily for him, the princess moved away, reaching out to hold her mother’s hand again. 

“See, you’re handling this just well.” Shiro glanced over at the other door, nudging Keith and nodding his head to gesture. “Lance and Allura are here.”

Keith turned towards the pair, breath catching in his throat. Lance and Allura were dressed alike, blue and white finely pressed clothes layered over each other. Lance’s shirt had golden buttons that went up to his throat, while Allura’s dress was decorated with gemstones. Lance had a golden headband that looked almost like a crown, matching the one that Keith was wearing, a small crystal hung from the headband and rested itself against Lance’s forehead, a dark sapphire that looked as though it was always meant to be there.

“Keith.” Lance greeted, moving over to the other man, smiling all the while. Keith offered a smile back, not nearly as large as Lance’s was, moving over to offer Lance his arm. 

“You look really nice.” Keith offered, leaving Shiro and Allura to deal with the influx of new arrivals. Lance didn’t seem to mind, happy to go further into the party. Soft music was just beginning to play, food was just coming out to a buffet, drinks were being carried on black trays and offered to everyone.

“So, this is a royal party?” Lance asked, leaning against one of the tables and pulling away from Keith. Lance plucked a morsel off the table, popping it into his mouth. “It really looks as boring as I thought it would be.”

“Does it? I didn’t know people thought these would be fun.” Keith laughed a little. “Do these really seem like something that people should be attending?”

“Everyone always talked about it. How interesting it would be to attend an actual party hosted by you and King Shiro.” Lance didn’t really seem interested in the party as much as he seemed interested in the food. “Oh my god, this is all amazing.”

“I’m glad someone enjoys it.” Keith plucked up too glassed from a nearby server, who paid him no mind. “Most of the party is just standing around and talking to one another, no one ever seems to enjoy the food or the drinks.”

“That’s just sad,” Lance muttered. “Is there anything I have to do other than look pretty?”

Keith tilted his head a little at the phrase, not sure if Lance was trying to say something or not. He brushed it off, shrugging his shoulders.

“Not any more than I am.” Keith ended up saying. “This party is meant to celebrate our engagement, so many people will want to talk to us. After this party, no one is going to want to talk to us too much. Mainly, everyone’s probably here to talk to you.”

“Me?” Lance asked, once more putting another treat in his mouth. “I have no idea what anyone would even want to say to me.”

“Well, you’re going to be the new Prince.” Keith shook his head. “Didn’t Allura tell you anything about this?”

“Mainly she said don’t make a move on anyone.” Lance shrugged. He looked over at where Shiro and Allura were, before looking back at Keith. His expression was unreadable, but Keith thought it seemed sad. 

“Allura is something else sometimes.” Keith ended up saying. He handed Lance the glass of champagne, sipping at his own. “You’re eating like you haven’t eaten in days.”

Lance didn’t say anything else, putting down the next morsel of food that he had been about to eat. Keith felt a twinge of guilt, but that faded quickly, forgotten as Shiro and Allura joined the rest of the party. It appeared all the guests had arrived, leaving them to entertain for the rest of the evening. 

“Come on.” Keith took Lance’s hand, leading him up towards the center, where Shiro and Allura were standing. “I don’t think Lotor’s here, but I really don’t want to take chances.”

“Lotor is here,” Shiro said, taking the glass from Keith. “Alcohol makes you confrontational.”

“You’re not my dad, Shiro, stop acting like it.” Keith snapped. Lance looked at him in surprise, not speaking up. The shock was clear on Allura’s and Shiro’s face as well, leaving them all standing in stunned silence. 

“You’re right, I’m not.” Shiro eventually said, voice a little tense. “Why don’t you relax and go get something to eat.”

Keith rolled his eyes. Allura grasped Shiro’s arm, leaning up to whisper in his ear frantically. Keith turned to leave, leaving Lance alone with the pair. It was awkward, standing there with the whispering couple, only a glass of champagne to keep him company.

“Um, I’m going to…” They weren’t paying any attention to him at all. Lance sighed, turning away from them to go further into the party. As all the guests had arrived, people were talking loudly amongst themselves, not even paying Lance any attention. Cameras could be seen along the edges of the group, the shutters flashing as they had when Lance was at the press conference, a couple of them focused on Lance himself.

Was he not here to make Keith look good? That their soon to be marriage was anything other than a scam? The presses could make him being alone for a moment at this engagement party into something that was just a downright lie. Lance turned to look for his fiance, finding him standing at the edge, talking to someone wearing all black. 

The man had long silver hair, he leaned close to Keith in a way that made Lance want to bristle with anger and pull him away from Keith. For all his credit, Keith looked angry, about ready to punch whoever it was he was talking to.

“-really, you have the most beautiful eyes.” The man spoke up, leaning towards Keith, reaching out to brush his knuckle across Keith’s skin. Keith batted the man away, refusing the touch as easily as he could. 

“You tell me that every time we meet. I’m not accepting your offer. You’re here right now to attend my engagement party.” Keith’s voice was a monotone like he had experienced this conversation one too many times. “Lotor-”

“Don’t speak, just let me admire you for a moment. Let me tell you, it’s not often that I meet a half-Glara who’s such as stunning as yourself.” Lotor reached out, about to touch Keith once more, but his touch was stopped almost immediately by Keith’s hand once more.

“I swear, if you do not stop talking I will cut off your family jewels so the Galra line will end with you.” Keith hissed. Lance stepped into view, just behind Lotor. Keith stopped, stepping back from Lotor and clearing his throat.

“There’s my finacé,” Keith said, stepping away from the man. Long, silver hair, swiveled over one shoulder as the man turned to look at him, arching a brow. 

“I’m Lance." Lance offered, sticking his hand out for the other prince. Lotor looked down at the appendage like it had offended him, before smirking slightly. He took Lance’s hand, raising it to his lips where he pressed a soft kiss on the back of it.

“Okay, you’re weird,” Lance muttered, looking over at Keith. Keith looked ready to punch Lotor, face twisting into rage once more, but then Lance reached over and placed a hand on Keith’s arm. The anger seemed to fade, even just a little bit. Lance leaned a little closer to Keith. “He’s really weird. Why is he kissing my hand?”

“Because he’s weird.” Keith pulled Lance back, away from Lotor, wrapping an arm around his waist. Lance almost could say it was  _ possessive,  _ it was sad how much he liked the gesture. “Lotor, this is my  _ fiancé,  _ Lance.” Lance didn’t miss the emphasis on the title either.

“Pleasure to meet you.” Whatever warmth that had been in Lotor’s voice was gone at the greeting of Lance, instead replaced with complete indifference. “I’m sure my generals will be in touch, Prince Keith. It was lovely to be invited to your party.”

Lotor turned away, moving further into the party and leaving them alone. Lance expected Keith’s arm to fall away, but instead, it remained firmly wrapped around his waist, fingers against the bone of his hip. Lance glanced at Keith, but the other man was staring off in another direction, not even looking at Lance.

“You okay?” Lance asked softly, looking around. He was a bit too close to Keith and pressed against him so he could feel every breath the other man took. Keith glanced at him, but his eyes were far away, somewhere else entirely.

“Yeah, fine.” Keith glanced over Lance’s shoulder, but when Lance looked there, he saw nothing more than mingling guests and cameras snapping photos. “We should get something to eat before Shiro announces the party is for us, otherwise we won’t get a break.”

“Ladies and Gentlefolk, I’m so glad that you all could come to celebrate the newest engagement of our family.” Shiro’s voice came over the microphone, a spotlight shining down upon Keith and Lance, making them obvious to the crowd. Keith shied away from the spotlight, while Lance gave a smile and a small wave. He was better suited for the crowd when he had a moment to prepare for them.

“Guess it’s a little too late for that.” Lance murmured to Keith, getting a small laugh. 

“Guess so,” Keith whispered in reply. “Guess so.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heyo don't forget to leave a comment below! Oh, and hey I really need a beta reader if anyone's interested?


	10. An hour

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enjoy! This chapter was beta read by the wonderful G_Money, give them a wonderful thank for making this chapter amazing.

Lance gripped Keith’s arm a little tighter, exhaustion causing another yawn to slide past his lips. It was late, already past midnight, and yet the party showed no signs of stopping. Keith glanced at him, bags present underneath his eyes as he led Lance to sit down for a moment. 

“I’ll tell Shiro we’re going to retire, and then you can get some rest.” Keith murmured, his voice nearly lost among the noise of the celebration. Lance nodded, relaxing into the chair. It was one of those hard plastic chairs, and the ridge of it dug into his spine and caused his back to ache. Even so, it took the pressure off of his poor sore feet and that was all that mattered. Keith pulled away from Lance, murmuring something about saying good night to his brother, and left the other to sit on his own.

“You look quite exhausted.” A voice began, a little louder than the background chatter. Lance looked up to see Lotor standing before him, hand perched on the back of his seat. As Lance leaned back in said chair, feigning nonchalance, he could feel Lotor’s thumb pressing against his spine. 

“I’ve never been to a party like this before,” Lance replied, shrugging. “It’s different, a lot of… entertaining on my part.”

“I forget that you’re not of royal blood. It’s quite amazing seeing something like this, isn’t it?” Lotor asked, glancing around. “You’re not the person that everyone expected Prince Keith to pick.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Lance asked, chest puffing out slightly in defense. He was too tired to be polite, anger swelling inside him like a wave.

“Just that... with Keith’s mixed blood-” Lotor paused, smiling down at Lance like he had slipped into a conversation with a child about how Santa Claus wasn’t real. “I probably shouldn’t say anything more.”

“Look, you got a problem or something?” Lance asked, standing up. His feet groaned in protest and his body ached with the need for sleep; he pushed that feeling to the back of his mind. “Why don’t you just go ahead and say what you want?”

“I don’t have to, everyone else’s already thinking it.” Lotor smirked, arms crossed over his chest. “There were just so many better options out there, I don’t see why he picked you.”

“You-”

“Lance?” Keith made an appearance, glancing between Lotor and his  fiancé . Taking a deep breath, Lance turned towards Keith, linking his arm with the other’s. 

“Let’s go to bed,” he announced, just loud enough for the Galra prince to hear. Instead of scowling with anger however, Lotor just smirked like he had gotten exactly what he wanted after all.

Lance took Keith’s hand, allowing the other to lead him through the crowd and away from the party. Keith was only a few steps in front of him, merely a few feet away, but it felt like an ocean. Before Lance could even blink, he was back in front of his room. Keith was already moving to let go of his hand.

“What did Lotor say to you?” Keith asked, fingers tightly curled around the knob of Lance’s door. Lance looked at him, not sure what to say. Eventually, after too much silence to be comfortable passed, he shrugged. 

“Nothing, really. The guy just likes the sound of his own voice.” Lance joked, nudging Keith. “Buddy, I’m tired. Can you open the door already?”

Keith started like he had forgotten where he was and what he was supposed to be doing. He opened the door for Lance, stepping to the side so his fiancé could enter. Lance placed his hand on the doorframe, preventing Keith from shutting it. 

“I actually had a little fun tonight,” Lance said, trying not to stumble over his words. Why was he so  _ awkward  _ around Keith? It was annoying. “Good night.”

“Night,” Keith said, turning towards his door. As he did so, Lance shut himself inside his room, listening as the other settled in. The sounds of Keith, while normally grating, were a comfort that Lance couldn’t explain. He stripped himself of his finery and crawled into bed, exhaustion hitting him, and he was asleep as soon as he closed his eyes.

* * *

A sudden noise erupted from Keith’s room and it roused Lance from his surprisingly-deep slumber. Lance turned his head, looking at the red numbers blaring on his alarm clock. Barely an hour had passed since he’d laid down to sleep.

Drearily he sat up, shoulders sagging with fatigue. Something shattered in Keith’s room, the force of it managing to shake the wall and cause their shared door to quake. Lance swung his legs over the side of his bed, rising quickly and heading towards the door.

“That’s not what I meant and you know it!” Keith shouted, a sound of another object breaking concluding his rebuttal. It wouldn’t surprise Lance if the other was destroying things just for the heck of it.

“Keith, you need to calm down.” Shiro snapped back. Lance had only ever heard their King sound this upset one other time when he’d told the country about the fall of Altea. “You-”

“You never listen to me.” Keith cuts in, something else falling and clattering to the floor. Lance pressed his ear against the cold wood of the door in an attempt to hear more. “I told you not to invite Lotor, I told you I didn’t want to have this party, I told you-”

“You told me a lot of things, Keith.” Shiro responded, a muffled sigh joining his confession. “It’s getting late. You should get to bed.”

The door slammed, Lance winced at the harsh sound. Another item fell—or maybe it was thrown— judging by how it had thumped against the wall. He could hear Keith  _ screaming  _ with anger. 

Lance waited a couple of minutes, his hand resting on the knob. He didn’t turn it, however. What was he doing? He should just walk away and head back to bed. A fight between brothers was not something he should get involved in.

Lance was about to turn away, but there was a small noise, barely even heard. It was more of a hiccup, a near sob, almost gone unnoticed due to Lance’s internal battle. 

He almost hoped that Keith had locked his side of the door, but as Lance twisted the knob it gave easily, swinging open into his fiancé’s room. The room was a mess, bedsheets were thrown to the floor as if they were stripped in an angry fit while small items were scattered around and an excess of glass shards were present on the hardwood floor. 

“Keith?” Lance asked, as softly as he could manage. The room was oddly... bare. The more Lance looked at it, the less he saw. Whatever had been decorating it previously seemed to have resorted to joining the mess on the floor. It almost seemed as if Keith could walk out of the room and no one would even know he had lived there.

“Lance?” Keith turned, hair falling over his eyes, hiding them from Lance’s view. His voice was choked up, like he had swallowed water too quickly. Lance tried to ignore it.

“I, uh…” Lance shook his head. “I heard something.”

It sounded awkward, forced, the obvious lie hanging heavily in the air between them. Keith brought a hand to his face, furiously wiping at his cheeks before any tears could fall. When he wasn’t told to leave Lance stepped into the room, walking around the broken glass so he wouldn’t slice his feet open.

“I really didn’t like Lotor,” Lance said, when Keith didn’t speak up. The other stared at him, not looking away as Lance tentatively sat down on the edge of Keith’s bed.

“You didn’t?” Keith asked, moving behind him as if trying to hide from the other’s line of sight.

“No, he’s a real jerk…He mentioned something about you, however. He really likes you. Gonna start media attention by being the third wheel in our relationship.” Lance tried to joke, his attempts at humor falling flat. Keith still laughed lightly though, and Lance figured that was all he’d been trying to accomplish.

“What did he say about me?” Keith asked, turning towards the other, eyes boring into Lance’s back. 

“Something about you having mixed blood,” Lance responded, flapping a hand dismissively. “He really thought I would care about something like that. As if I, out of anyone, would be so petty.”

Keith was silent but Lance could feel the bed dip behind him, the other man moving to sit down. Lance glanced over his shoulder at the other, but didn’t move from his own spot. To his dismay, Keith still refused to look at him.

“Is that all he said?” Keith asked, eventually. Lance still sat on the edge of the bed and cautiously he turned to cross his legs, keeping them close to himself.  “I mean, there were a few vague insults towards me, but overall I think they needed some work.”

Keith smiled, a small little thing that Lance almost didn’t catch before it had disappeared once more.  He ran his fingers over one another like he was trying to rub away imaginary dirt. " He’s right.” Keith blurted out, glancing at Lance. The bangs draped over his eyes hid them from Lance’s gaze.

“Right about the insults?” Lance considered, teasing the prince a little. Keith scoffed, reaching out as if to try and push Lance from the bed. 

“No, you jerk. Lotor was right... about my blood.” Keith’s voice didn’t hold any of the previous humor and he seemed to shrink more into himself, shoulders slumping. “I’m not...I’m half Galra. I’m not even a prince.”

Keith laughed, short and choppy like it was the funniest thing he had ever said. Lance stared at him, moving closer for a moment. When Keith didn’t tell him to leave, he continued to inch until he was sitting beside him. Lance could feel the body heat radiating off the other, strong and steady. 

“Okay?” Lance asked, not sure what to say. “I’m a little surprised at the not being a prince part, but so what if you’re half Galra?”

“What do you mean? We’re at war with them! They’ve killed thousands of people!” Keith brought his hands up to his eyes, and Lance almost reeled at the knowledge that Keith was  _ crying.  _ The guy was tearing up and oh, it must have been so hard for Keith to tell him all this. “I’m nothing here, aren’t I? Absolutely nothing.”

“Keith,” Lance reached over and placed his hand over Keith’s own. When it wasn’t shaken off, he left it there. “I know this must be hard, but you have to calm down and tell me what you’re thinking. I’m not a mind reader, ya know.”

“My dad was just some guy and my mom was a Galra. They had me… I was lucky I knew Shiro growing up.

When my mom left, my dad did, too. I was so young, but Shiro managed to convince his family to take me in. People had questions, of course, so they just said that they’d been keeping me from the public. There you go… I guess that’s me.” Keith shook his head, pulling his hand away from Lance’s.

“That was nice of Shiro to do.” Lance eventually said. He didn’t move away from Keith, so Keith moved away from him, shifting to the other end of the bed. “I don’t really understand why this is such a big deal, though.”

“Really? You don’t understand? We’re at war, if anyone knew there would be a revolution.” Keith ducked his head down, once more hiding behind his hair. Lance moved slightly towards Keith, but the other turned his head away, physically trying to block Lance out.

“I still don’t really get why... It’s more of a big deal because you’re making it out to be one.” Lance smiled slightly, moving over to lean against Keith. The other stiffened but didn’t push him off. 

“You make it seem like it’s so taboo, but I bet a lot of people wouldn’t even care if you told them.”

“Allura cares.” Keith murmured, so soft that Lance almost didn’t catch it. 

“I think Queen Allura has been through a lot, and if you talked to her about it, she would tell you so herself.” Lance returned. “Keith,  _ I _ don’t care if you’re half Galra.”

Keith didn’t say anything, Lance ended up burying his face against Keith’s shoulder, inhaling the other’s spicy scent. It was something he hadn’t noticed before; but since he was pressed up against Keith, it was actually quite pungent. Unbidden, a yawn passed from Lance’s lips, reminding him of just how late it really was… and how tiring the day had been.

“You should get some sleep.” Keith pulled back suddenly, leaving Lance to fall face first onto the bed’s soft duvet. He groaned at the thought of having to get up and go to his own room when something heavy spread over him, warmth seeping into his body. Lance pulled the blanket away from his face, looking up as Keith pulled some of his bed sheets off the floor and turned out the light.

“I can go to my room, if you want,” Lance said, but his voice was slurred, revealing how tired he really was. “It’s not that far.”

“It’s fine,” Keith replied, his voice quiet as he settled onto the floor, leaving Lance alone on the bed. “Go to sleep.”

Keith received a snore as an answer, causing another smile to spread across his face. It had been a long night, and he settled into sleep just as easily as Lance did.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't forget to leave a comment below, especially if you liked the chapter!


	11. Ashes, Ashes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another chapter down! A ton of work went into this one, just a lot of work. A huge shout-out to G_Money for beta reading!
> 
> Please read the end of chapter notes as well!

Keith woke up early, a consequence of not closing the blinds when he'd gone to bed. With a messy groan, he turned over, quickly realizing something was constricting his movement. Keith turned his head, just enough to notice Lance lying next to him with an arm tightly extended around his waist. Keith took a deep breath, trying to stay calm so as not wake Lance up. 

Why was Lance even on the floor with him? Keith could feel his cheeks turning red at the contact as he pulled the blanket over his face to hide. He shifted again, feeling Lance's grip somehow wrap tighter around him. This was a nightmare, wasn’t it? Some weird, convoluted, nightmare dreamed up by his own psyche... which apparently only wanted to torture Keith.

Carefully, he turned around, his front now-pressed against Lance’s own. He could feel the soft brush of the other's breath against his cheeks, soft and warm. Lance’s face was relaxed in his sleep, only miniscule bags dotting his under eyes. Keith reached up, the tips of his fingers barely present as he brushed over Lance’s cheekbones, pointy chin, graceful brow, and other features. He mapped out his fiance’s face with feather light touches, hoping he wouldn't cause Lance to stir. 

“It’s not fair.” Keith murmured, his voice so quiet that even he could barely hear it. “You’re so nice, so beautiful. It shouldn’t be allowed.”

Lance let out a soft, sleep-induced noise before adjusting and leaning forward, burying his face against Keith’s shoulder. Keith started to protest, but he didn’t want to wake Lance up just yet, and the warmth and comfort the embrace gave was something he hadn't realized he'd wanted. 

“Okay.” Keith murmured, gently untangling himself from Lance’s embrace. The other's face screwed up, and Keith was almost sure he was going to wake up. Lance simply flopped onto his stomach, a snore escaping his lips. Keith snorted slightly shaking his head at the sight.

He left Lance to get ready for the day, hoping the other would get as much rest as he could before they had to do more activities.

* * *

Lance's time fiddling with all the “luxuries” of royalty quickly turned from entertaining to stir-crazy. The walls of the castle were all starting to look the same; the activities too boring to captivate his attention. Shiro and Allura were off in the town's square, Keith was training… and not for the first time, Lance was left with nothing to do all day. He had no desire to go and train with Keith, and he was already sure that he'd explored every nook and cranny of the castle. Well, the parts that were open to him, at least. 

With a quick shower, Lance dressed in one of his few casual outfits and began walking down the halls, heading towards the main entrance. Servants, if they even recognized him, didn’t seem to care where he went; it was no time at all before Lance was outside in the sun, enjoying the feel of it on his skin.

Lance shoved his hands deep into the pockets of his jacket, sighing. He had woken up alone, a simple heap on Keith’s floor. His cheeks flushed even  _ thinking  _ about it, he had been stupid. Lance had woken up in the middle of the night, tired and cold, and had thought nothing of joining the other on the floor. Of course, it had been less comfortable, but it was still warmer nestled with Keith. 

Keith though, Keith had obviously not wanted him there. The light streaming from the window had been bright, the blankets no longer warm, telling Lance he'd been lying there for a while.

Sighing, Lance dragged a hand through his hair as he jogged past the gate of the castle, visibly relaxing as he got past its boundaries. He really wanted to focus on clearing his mind. 

Outside, it was just as bustling as it had always been. People were out and about, moving around as they so desired and buying whatever it was they needed. Lance stuck his hands into the pocket of his jacket, trying to find some cash. He could do with a little shopping, a little present to make himself feel better.

He found nothing hidden in the pockets of his jacket, not even a spare coin that he could spend. Lance had no doubt he could go back to the castle and get money from  _ someone _ , probably Keith, but the thought of it only filled him with dread. 

He'd been so  _ stupid.  _ Yes, there was going to be a marriage, but that didn’t mean Lance truly meant anything to Keith. That didn’t mean anything would grow once the matrimony was planted. It may even be doomed to die. 

Keith just wanted a quick marriage to quell his family's worries. He didn’t want Lance for his personality, or anything else really...

Lance tried to shake those thoughts away by looking around at the shops, distracting himself with each ones’ wares. At one particular stand, there were countless exotic fruits and spices on display. The foreign merchandise was some that Lance had never seen, let alone tried, before.

“Do you want a free sample?” The woman sitting at the table asked, picking up some sort of food. It was red on the outside, slightly spiky, and when she sliced it open white and black colorings were revealed. “It’s a dragon fruit.”

“You sure?” Lance asked, but he was already taking the offered fruit, biting into the tender flesh. It wasn’t as sweet as a kiwi, but it was still there, and Lance gave an appreciative hum. “Thanks.”

“Anything for the prince.” The woman bowed at the waist, nearly crashing into a pile of apples near the edge of her table. Lance sputtered, shaking his head.

“I’m not-It’s not anything important.” Lance ended up saying. “I’ll come back and pay you later.” 

“You don’t have to.” She shook her head. “It’s the least I could do.”

Lance shrugged helplessly, he didn’t know what to say other than a small thank you.

The rest of the market was rather dull. There just wasn’t anywhere he hadn’t been before, nor an item he hadn’t already examined. Lance found himself wandering from stand to stand, looking at everything but not truly seeing any of it. 

He should go visit his family. They’d be happy to see him, and it would definitely ease some of the tension Lance was feeling. Yet the same thoughts that filled him with comfort also filled him with a sense of dread. His mother would probably yell at him for leaving and he wouldn't be able to get a word in; an utter madhouse. Despite this, there was an unshakeable ache in his chest that could only be solved by going to see his family. 

“Hey, kid! Wanna see something cool?”, someone called. Lance turned, not sure if he was the one being addressed. However, he soon met the wide eyes of a shopkeeper, a startling grin plastered on their face. The man was standing over an assortment of weapons, many gleaming blades flashing due to the midday light. Lance walked cautiously over to the booth, planning on taking just a quick look.

“Sure.” He answered, a little curious. The man's eyes lit up as he procured a small knife from below the shop's main table. It was just long enough to be considered a dagger in Lance's book, decorated with an eye-catching hilt comprised of some purple material. Lance sucked in a breath of air, it was undoubtedly a Galra blade. Those were certainly few and far between around here, especially one in such great condition.

“A genuine Galra blade... Someone fighting stole it off a dead soldier, almost lost a leg for it—or did he lose a leg? I can’t remember.”  The man shook his head, “Whatever, I’ll sell it to ya for only five hundred G.A.C.”

The purple of the blade reminded Lance of Keith’s eyes. They matched almost perfectly, though Keith’s eyes might've been a slightly-lighter shade. Lance reached into his pocket- as if he had any money- but paused, brows furrowing. 

“Aren’t these illegal?” Lance asked, watching as the salesman tried to hide the blade under the table. “They are, aren’t they?”

“C’mon, kid, everyone sells something a  _ little _ illegal. How else are we gonna make money?” The man scoffed. “Three hundred G.A.C. and you don’t tell the cops.”

“How about free?” Lance returned just as easily. “I mean, how bad would it look if I turned you in for trying to sell me illegal weapons.”  Pidge would applaud him for being so cunning.

The shopkeeper's face fell, lips parting in shock as he glanced nervously over Lance’s shoulder. No guards were near at the moment, but who was to say they couldn't be hidden by another stall. 

“Bluffing.” The salesman sneered, grasping the handle of the blade. Lance shrugged, he felt bad but the very least he could was get the blade away from the shopkeeper. It'd be safer out of reach of more impressionable people, where it could do some real harm. 

“I think the penalty for selling stolen weapons is a pretty hefty fine, maybe even some time in jail... Wanna find out?”  Lance looked over his shoulder, a pair of guards walking out into the general vicinity. They stood not even ten feet away, currently trying to act like they hadn't been following him. Lance gestured over to them, and like loyal dogs, they bounded to his side, concern etched across their features. 

“Is something wrong, Prince Lance?” One of them spoke, so close that Lance could feel him pressed against his side. Lance took a step back from the guard, gesturing to the salesman.

“Nothing’s wrong, this man here was just helping me with a sale, wasn’t he?” Lance felt something form in the pit of his stomach. It was almost like guilt, but that didn’t seem right... He tried his best to ignore it.

“Of course.” The salesman handed over the knife, which he graciously wrapped up in a cloth. Lance peeked it open just enough to see the handle of the blade, the flash of purple revealing its identity.

“Thank you,” Lance replied, shoving it inside his jacket where it pressed snugly against his breast. It's weight pulled at him, his mind screaming that it didn’t belong there.

The guards followed him, much closer now that he'd acknowledged them previously. Lance elected to ignore their company, the mood for conversation lost as he thought about what he was carrying.

Keith wouldn’t want the blade, would he? The thought struck Lance unexpectedly, his step stumbling. One of his guards surged forward to help steady him before he fell flat on his face. Lance laughed at his own foolishness, he might've seriously hurt himself with a knife in his front pocket.

“Thanks.” Lance, now stable on his feet, immediately returned to thinking about Keith. Would Keith even like the blade? Lance found himself chewing on his bottom lip, abusing the vulnerable strip of flesh.

Keith wouldn't accept it. 

Or would he?

Lance's guards led him back towards the castle, up the marble steps, and into the doorway separating the outside world from the castle’s grand foyer. Lance looked up, seeing Keith rushing towards him, his eyes wide with panic. Lance opened his mouth to ask what was wrong, when the aftershock of the first bomb knocked him forwards onto the stone steps. Ash and debris reigned down from the sky like falling snow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heyo, make sure to leave a comment below!


	12. We all fall down

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Huh, this is the only thing I'm posting or updating this week. Strange feeling, normally I'm posting multiple things. Anyways, hope you enjoy! Another week to do a shout out to my beta reader, G_Money!

The first bomb fell from a small aircraft passing overhead. The bright colors adorning its sides depicted it as one of Voltron’s own. The explosive struck the middle of the market, landing on countless unsuspecting people. Innocent beings, who had previously only been enjoying the wares or selling their produce. Those who weren’t killed immediately were knocked over, shrapnel digging into body parts. 

The second bomb fell closer to the edge of the market. Lance looked up just in time to see it fall and hear the screams of the surrounding people. One of Keith’s hands wrapped around a shoulder, fingers digging into Lance's skin as he tried to pull the other to his feet. Vaguely a thought echoed in the back of Lance's mind, secretly thanking the shopkeeper for wrapping the sharp blade in cloth. It had probably been the only force stopping the thing from piercing through the soft flesh of his stomach.

Was he even still alive?

“Lance! Get the fuck up and  _ move _ !” Keith was suddenly shouting in his ear, causing Lance to flinch away. Keith refused to let him go, nails scratching at his shoulder and digging harsh red lines into his tanned skin. “You have to get inside!”

“Fuck that!” Lance shoved at Keith, getting up. The knife fell out of his jacket with a clatter, almost disappearing into the array of debris that littered their feet. “What the  _ fuck  _ just happened?”

Everyone around him was screaming. Lance’s heart was beating so fast that it felt as if it was about to leap from his chest. Lance vaguely recalled bending over to grab the knife so he wouldn’t lose it in the panic. Keith grabbed Lance’s arm, a tightened grasp that made Lance think of a snake striking its prey.

“Lance! Enough!” Keith moved forward, shoving himself in front of Lance as another bomb fell. This one was further away, towards the edge of the city. Lance raised he free arm to block the flash of bright light that blazed across the sky. 

“We gotta help!” Lance voiced, as he pressed against Keith’s front. Dust settled around them like rain; there was a cut on Keith’s cheek where flying debris had grazed him. Without thinking, Lance reached up to swipe at the small beads of blood currently forming on the other's dirt-laden face. 

“You need to get inside.” Keith didn’t bat Lance's hand away, he didn’t even seem to notice the touch. “You could get hurt.”

“Other’s already  _ are _ hurt!” Lance wanted to smack Keith, but settled with shoving the other away. Lance hurried down the elongated steps of the castle. “We have to help… to see what we can do!”

Keith groaned, a noise Lance barely heard over the desperate cries of the injured and the rapid panting of his own breath. He left Keith there, standing, with the choice of whether to follow or be left behind.

The devastation was utterly terrible.

Tears left tracks down ashen faces; watery stains that could be wiped away, never truly parting with their psychological meaning. Lance helped those that he could, pulling people from the wreckage and helping them to possible areas where medics would arrive.

The worst was when Lance would pull solid rock off of crushed citizens, hearing bones grate against concrete and snap into smaller pieces. Keith was always close to him, barely a few feet away, as they rigorously worked to help these people. 

“You’re bleeding,” Keith spoke suddenly, as they shifted a large tarp they'd found over a stilled body. Lance looked down at his palms, scratched and covered in grime. Stones had cut into his hands and left deep gashes where once-smooth skin had been present. 

“I’m fine.” Lance wiped the excess blood onto his pants, wincing at the slight sting the action brought. “There’s more people we can help.”

Lance looked at Keith, the small cut on the other's cheek had started bleeding again. Dust had stained his cheek, the blood cutting through it like a knife. Lance reached over, tugging Keith closer to wipe at the mess, to make sure the damage wasn’t anything more than a small cut.

Lance's head hurt, seeming to reverberate endlessly with a constant pounding. There was even a faint noise, a high pitched trill that comes with hitting your head too hard.

“I think you need to lay down.” Keith didn’t lean away from Lance’s touch. Lance dragged his thumb over the cut, smearing some of the blood and stopping the flowing tracks. Keith’s eyes were so purple, looking at Lance as if he was something of important.

“I found the prince!” Someone yelled, as they rushed towards the pair. Keith pulled away, but not far enough that their contact was completely broken. 

“We should really help out some more people,” Lance mumbled. “Do you want to talk to the guards?”

“I don’t know what we can do other than stay here.” Keith glared down at the ground, like it had personally offended him. 

The guards fell in line once they realized that they hadn't been harmed, only a few feet away as they went to help other victims. 

The sound of sobbing was never going to be erased from Lance’s memory. He watched as parents hunched over the fallen bodies of their children. Children, now alone, sobbing as they hugged dainty knees to their chests.

Lance recalled his own family.

They lived outside the general vicinity of the market, so they should've been safe. Sudden panic rose in his chest like bile, forcing him to think of little else except their possible demise. Tears pricked at his eyes, hot and burning, threatening to fall.

“Lance, help me.” Keith broke him from his panicked thoughts with ease, like a swan gliding across the surface of a lake. Keith was currently trying to move a stone that was pinning the leg of a little boy, probably no older than six. Lance almost didn’t want to, it would hurt the kid a lot more once it was moved.  

“Okay.” Lance started forward, nails scraping against the stone as they lifted the heavy piece of concrete off of the child. 

The cry of pain was something that Lance would never forget. He and Keith dropped the hunk of rock as soon as they were able, hurrying back to inspect the child’s obviously-broken leg. With nothing they could do to help, Lance simply sat as the child cried, offering a comforting presence. 

“Shh, it’s okay.” Lance wondered where the child's parents were, if they were even still alive. “It’s going to be okay.”

Keith stood awkwardly to the side, unsure of how to act. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, medics finally started to arrive. Keith reached down, pulling Lance away from the child. The kid reminded Lance of his nephew, and for a moment panic gripped at his heart, making it race. 

“He’s going to be okay, right?” Lance turned to Keith, desperately gripping at the other's jacket. “He’s going to be okay?”

“I’m sure he is.” Keith seemed confused, but didn’t push Lance away.

Lance was  _ exhausted  _ all of a sudden. Whatever energy had graced him when the explosion first hit was quickly diminishing, leaving him feeling as if he was about to collapse. 

“C’mon.” Keith wrapped an arm around Lance’s waist, helping him walk. Every bump and bruise, every little scratch, was pronounced as they continued their slow trek. The way Keith looked at him in concern made Lance wonder if he looked as bad as he felt. Scratch that, he  _ knew _ he looked like a mess.

“There’s still people-“

“I know there is.” Keith interrupted, “But you can’t help any of them if you’re hurt too.”

Lance dug his heels into the ground, forcing Keith to stop. Keith sighed, the kind of sigh someone lets out when they’re dealing with something stupid.

“Look, we're not talking-“

“Lance!” Hunk came stumbling forward out of the mass of people. For such a large man, he could slip between the crowds with ease. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine. Where’s Pidge?” Lance moved around Keith, the other letting him pass. 

“She's got a nasty cut on her head, but otherwise she’s fine. Getting patched up now.” Hunk laid a large hand on Lance’s shoulder. “You’re really okay?”

“I’m okay.” Lance insisted. Why was everyone so convinced he was hurt? He was perfectly fine; why couldn't they realize that? “Have you met Keith yet?”

“What?” Hunk glanced back at Keith, before shaking his head. “Um, no.”

“Oh, Hunk, this is Keith. Keith, this is Hunk, my friend.” Lance waved between the two of them. “You’ll like each other.”

“Hi.” Keith nodded towards Hunk, but he kept looking at Lance, brows furrowed. “I really think you need to go and lay down for a while.”

“Leave me alone.” Lance snapped, reeling back at his tone. He sounded  _ mad,  _ but he wasn't really, only tired.  Well, everyone pestering him about his health wasn't helping either. “Sorry.”

“Look, the medics are arriving… you can go grab your friends and bring them back with us.”

Lance ended up nodding, allowing Keith and Hunk to herd him back to the palace, Pidge joining -almost as if she appeared from thin air- as well. It wasn’t until they reached the steps of the castle that they took a break, sitting on cracked stairs that were littered with debris. Lance refused to pay too much attention when some of the dark spots looked suspiciously like blood. 

“That was one of our planes.” Keith sat leaning forward, as if ready to jump into battle the moment a threat appeared. “How was that one of  _ our  _ planes?”

“Keith,” Lance mumbled, reaching over to curl his fingers into the hem of Keith’s jacket. The knife falling from his own jacket’s pocket once more; it was amazing that it hadn’t tumbled out earlier. “Oh.”

Keith didn’t seem to notice, glaring as if the world before him was on fire and someone had placed the matches in his hands. Lance sighed, picking up the wrapped knife and passing it towards the other, hoping to distract him. 

“I got it for you,” Lance said. He glanced over at Hunk and Pidge, but the two were absorbed with whispering to each other. Blood had trickled down the side of Pidge’s face, staining the collar of her shirt. It was turning an ugly brown color as it dried, mesmerizing in its own right. 

“Where did you get this?” Keith’s voice broke Lance out of his reverie. Keith had the knife balanced across his knees, fingers trailing over the sharp edges. Lance really hoped he wouldn’t hurt himself by accident, the blade was very sharp. 

“Some guy had it and he gave it to me. Thought it’d be fitting for you.” Lance shrugged, looking forward as his eyes scanned the devastation. 

The wreckage before him was astounding and it had only occurred in the span of a few minutes.  Lance's hands fell to the cold stone, small pebbles digging into the cut flesh of his palms as ashes fell.  He heard the cries of a hundred different people.

At some point, Keith’s hand joined his on the cool slab, fingers barely brushing over his own. Lance pretended not to notice. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Don't forget to leave a comment below!


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No update last week because of personal reasons! Sorry about all that, I hope you enjoy this chapter!

The media had gone insane with what little they knew. They knew it was Voltron’s own plane, they knew it was an attack that had killed hundreds, and they knew almost nothing else. What little they had to go on though, they ran with it. 

_ “The King and Queen have yet to release a statement, leaving others in question about their motives. Do they know who was manning the plane? Are they trying to cover something up? The people are asking for information and the royal family has yet to answer any-“ _

Keith shut off the television. Silence engulfed the group as they contemplated what had happened. The country seemed ready to lynch someone, be them guilty or innocent. 

“It could have been hijacked.” Pidge eventually said, staring down at the table. When she tapped it, it lit up under her touch and revealed the schematics of a plane. “With high enough tech it might have even been remotely controlled.”

“For that range? Someone was flying it.” Hunk cut in, looking over her shoulder. “Someone would have had to load the bombs in the first place to get them there.”

“That doesn’t mean that it can’t be controlled. Everything’s automatic, you can’t tell me you really think that someone was inside the plane, manually opening the hatch and dropping bombs out.” Pidge rolled her eyes. “Someone was flying that plane.”

“So someone either took the plane, hijacked it, or remote controlled it?” Lance laid his head on the table, it was cold against his skin. 

“Someone could have made a ship that just looks like ours,” Shiro spoke up, pulling up the small footage that they had of the plane. His arms were crossed tightly over his chest, barely allowing him room to breathe much less move. 

“Coran,” Allura said, voice firm. “What do you think? I know you’ve been busy lately making sure the castle is well maintained.”

“Well, princess, it’s a right mistake.” Coran shook his head. Lance just couldn’t get over his  _ voice.  _ The man seemed to come from another planet itself, from the rather eccentric clothes he wore to the mustache he meticulously groomed. Lance took a liking to him almost instantly. “I do believe someone  _ copied  _ our ship, like Shiro pointed out.”

“Copying the hull of a ship would be easier than stealing one of ours.” Allura nodded wisely. Lance wondered how much she had seen already in such a short life to be so calm about the talk of war. “Do we know anything about the bomb that went off?”

“Not yet, princess. They’re still trying to find out more.” Coran placed a hand on her shoulder. “It shouldn’t be too long now.”

“Why do you call her princess?” Pidge piped up, pushing her glasses up when they slid down her nose. 

“Force of habit. I’ve been around the princes her whole life, I’m afraid. Can’t bring myself to call her anything but what she’s always been, a princess.” Coran folded his hands behind his back, almost his default pose. 

“Huh.” Pidge didn’t say anything more, looking at the footage with Shiro. Lance wasn’t the only one who winced when the video stopped in the middle of a scream, the transmission cutting out just as the fire started.

“Wait,” Keith spoke up, leaning forward, palms flat on the table. “Play it again.”

“Again?” Shiro asked, but still did as he was told. He rewound the video, hesitating when Keith told him to stop.    
“Play it from there.” Keith stood up so he could look at the video closer. 

Shiro pressed play. Lance couldn’t bring himself to watch this time, his eyes turning to Keith as the bomb fell, a scream was abruptly cut off. The silence was dreadful, even worse than the scream that hung heavy in the air like a knife about to hit the ground.

“Again.”

Lance winced again. Others groaned as Shiro faithfully rewound the video and started it over again from the same part that Keith had indicated last time. 

“Again.”

Rustling of fabric. With his eyes squeezed shut, Lance could hear so much more in the video that he had heard before. He could hear Hunk next to him shifting, probably not watching the video again either.

“Play it again!”

Lance sighed, waiting, listening. He wasn’t sure what he was waiting for that was different than what he had heard before. There was that brief moment of silence once more before the scream made Lance jump.

“Aga-”

“Enough! What are you looking for?” Lance jumped up, chair clattering to the floor. Keith looked over at him, eyes slightly wide in shock, but he backed down. Lance let his shoulders fall in relief, not realizing they had bunched up tightly.

“Look, near the end.” Keith moved over behind Shiro, rewinding the video. He played it in slowly, going second by second all focused on the plane. “Right there, do you see it?”

The hatch to the plane was open, inside the plane was a small figure, too blurry to make out, but that wasn’t what had their attention. The inside of the ship was completely different from what their normal ships were like, the colors were much darker than what the Voltron armies used. Even what small details of the person they could see, were off. The uniform was a solid white, unlike their normal white uniforms.

“That’s not really our plane, someone dressed it up like it though.” Keith crossed his arms, matching his brother. 

“Great. Absolutely no one is going to believe that.” Hunk shook his head. His somber attitude was a complete change from how he normally was, it unsettled Lance more than anything else.

“We must do something,” Allura said softly. “People won’t be restful for long. They want answers. Coran, I hate to ask, but you were so good with public relations back on Altea, would you mind doing so again?”

“Not at all, princess!” Coran lit up, grabbing his phone out and tapping away at it. “We can have everything together in a jiffy, don’t you worry one bit.”

“Thank you, Coran.” Allura sighed, her shoulders slumping forward. The weight of the world had just seemed to fall upon her, leaving her standing on her own. Shiro wrapped an arm around her shoulder, and some of the weight seemed to lift.

“There’s not much more we can do tonight, we should get some rest.” Shiro glanced over at Pidge and Hunk, questioning but not saying anything about where they had come from. “You two are more than welcome to stay.”

“I’m going out to help.” Lance rose, pushing his chair back and standing. His head pounding in time with his heartbeat, but he couldn’t imagine sitting inside any longer. “They probably still need it.”

“Are you sure? You don’t look too good.” Hunk rose as well, and so did Pidge. Lance almost wanted to agree to lay down, but he refused. 

“Lance, you need rest,” Keith mumbled, arms crossed over his chest.

“I’m fine.” Lance bit out, harsher than he intended. “I’m sorry, it’s just, people need help.”

“And people will understand why you’re not out there,” Keith argued. “Look, I’ll get one of the healers to look at you, and if they say you’re fine then you can go help people until you drop.”

“Fine.” Lance agreed, simply because it was easier than arguing with Keith. He sat down heavily in the chair once more, as Keith gestured for a guard to go and get a medic to examine Lance.

Lance leaned his head back, willing himself to believe that there was nothing wrong with him. Even if there was something wrong with him, Lance couldn’t bring himself to say that it was any more important than what everyone else was going through outside. Something poked his cheek, a feather-light touch that made Lance peek open his eyes to look at the source of it.

Keith had poked his cheek, brows furrowed together into a thick line. When he saw that Lance’s eyes were open, he drew back, still standing close but no longer poking Lance’s cheek.

“Sorry,” Keith mumbled. Lance let his eyes slide shut once more. The silence was thick in the air but Lance didn’t feel like being the one to break it.

The medics told them it was a mild concussion, though the woman who was looking him over barely stayed with him for five minutes, Lance had no idea how she could tell that in such a short examination. Keith thanked her, actually thanked her, before firmly grasping Lance’s upper arm and leading her towards his room.

“You need to get rest for a while, at least a couple hours, before you go out there to help others.” Keith’s hand was like a vice, Lance tried to twist away but he couldn’t quite manage it. Before he knew it, they were standing in front of his room, Keith pushing him inside but not entering himself.

“You can come in, you know.” Lance moved over and sat heavily on his bed, it was even softer than he remembered. Keith walked in slightly, standing near the doorway but still close enough to leave in an instant. 

“The medic says a good night's rest and you need to take it easy, and you should be good in a couple days,” Keith said, walking closer, arms crossed over his chest. “It was really stupid for you to go out with your head hurting.”

“Shut up, mullet.” Lance leaned forward a little bit, closer to Keith. On Keith’s forehead, a small cut was there, disappearing into his hairline. 

Lance stood, going to the bathroom and getting the first aid kit. Keith didn’t seem to care what he was doing, only sitting down when Lance urged him to, almost hunkering down in a plush, pastel eggshell blue armchair.

“You’re hurt too,” Lance mumbled. Keith didn’t say anything, allowing Lance to dab at his cut with a cotton ball soaked in hydrogen peroxide. Lance was so absorbed in the task, he didn’t realize how close he was until he felt Keith’s hand tentatively on his waist. Those dark, violet eyes were staring up at him, silently asking if it was okay, and Lance nodded slightly.

“Does it hurt?” Lance asked, putting the soiled cotton ball to the side. He grabbed a fresh bandage, brushing Keith’s bangs back, not allowing the other man to hide behind them.

“No.” Keith’s voice was so soft, Lance had never heard him speak so quietly before. Lance bent down to be a little closer to Keith, tilting his head to the side. “Does your head hurt?”

“No.” Lance returned. Keith’s hands were on his hips, thumbs rubbing soothing circles there, sending shudders down Lance’s spine. “Hey, Keith?”

“Yeah?” Keith sat up straighter, almost straining to be closer to him. A while ago, Lance would have hesitated, but this time he refused. He wouldn’t let his hesitations hold him back.

Lance pressed his lips against Keith’s own, Keith’s lips soft but slightly chapped against his own. The other man didn’t move for a second, but Lance felt him inhale, felt fingers tighten on his hips, managing to pull him closer. Keith’s lips moved tentatively against his own for only a moment before he pulled back, their kiss broken too soon for Lance’s taste.

“Is that what you wanted to say?” Keith asked. Lance brushed Keith’s hair back into place, almost hiding the bandage that showed in barely a peek through his black hair.

“No,” Lance confessed. Keith made a small noise, trying to move up to steal another kiss, Lance laughed at the audacity. “I’ve just wanted to do that for a while now.”

“Steal my first kiss?” Keith teased, his voice lighter than Lance had ever heard it before. Lance almost reeled back, trying to stutter out his response.

“That was your first kiss?!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please, please, please, leave a comment below!


	14. Unexpected visitor

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> After a very long break, have an update!

The only thing that was worse than being alone after such an anxiety-inducing day, was waking up to find a guest that Lance could have easily said he would have been fine never seeing again. Keith had been stuck with entertaining Lotor apparently, while Pidge and Hunk had just done their best to hide laughter behind their hands as they saw Keith’s irritation grow.

“What the fuck man,” Lance mumbled, walking into the main room. Hunk no longer bothered to stifle giggles behind his hand, full on laughing as he saw Keith clench his fists to prevent himself from punching Lotor.

“He showed up about an hour ago,” Pidge explained. She was tapping away at something in front of her, barely glancing at the others, though she was still smiling slightly. 

“Did he say why he was here? And why is he talking to Keith?” Lance hissed back. He felt underdressed, suddenly, compared to Lotor in finery and even Pidge and Hunk were dressed up better than they had been yesterday. Someone must have brought them clothing.

“Apparently he never really left after your party.” Hunk said. “Which you didn’t invite us to. Lame.”

Lance shook his head, standing up and heading over to Keith before the other burst a blood vessel. Lotor just looked so smug, leaning closer to Keith even as Lance walked up and heard soft words of sympathy.

“I understand that it’s no easy matter, having to deal with all of these things, of course, your brother has always been good at handling these tragedies.” Lotor reached out, placing his hand on Keith’s arm, only to have it yanked out of reach a moment later. “Just as fiery as ever.”

“Keith?” Lance asked, standing just a little too close to Keith for what might have been proper, but it made Lotor lean back and Lance silently revel in that victory. “New guest?”

“Ah, it’s the brunette beauty.” Lotor sat up a little straighter, grinning at Lance. Lotor’s canines were just a bit too sharp, a bit too rugged to be anything but unnerving. “I was wondering when you’d make an appearance here, I have to say seeing you again just brightens my morning here. I was thinking there’s a shortage of handsome men in this palace.”

“What?” Lance almost choked out, completely caught off guard. Lotor reached out, taking his hand and pressing a quick kiss to the back of it, having to actually step back when Keith stood, getting in between them like Lotor was an enemy bullet being fired at Lance. 

“Oh, so much has changed in such a short time.” Lotor laughed, standing up and crossing his arms over his chest, somehow the action made him seem bigger than before. “And yet, the last time I was here, you two seemed like such strangers towards another. But I suppose that’s not really my business.”

“It’s not.” Keith hissed. Lance nudged the other, trying to silently ground him. Keith just seemed to grow tenser, but he didn’t lash out. 

“Uh, what’d I miss?” Lance asked Keith, glancing at Lotor. Keith shrugged, turning more so he faced his fiancé and his back was to Lotor. If the Galra Prince was offended at the gesture, he didn’t show it at all. 

“Nothing, Lotor just decided to show up and say he never left. Shiro doesn’t find that suspicious at all.” Keith was even dressed nicely, Lance realized.

“Have you eaten breakfast yet?” Lance asked, catching his fiancé off guard. The question seemed to dull some of the anger that was bubbling just underneath the surface for Keith. After a moment, Keith shook his head no. 

“Great, neither have I!” Lotor, apparently done with being ignored, chimed in. 

“I’ll tell the kitchen to make you something right away then.” Lance rolled his eyes. The Galra Prince reminded Lance of a child who couldn’t go five minutes without needing attention of some sort. 

“Oh hey.” Pidge suddenly spoke up, breaking the trio from their small little argument. “Shiro said that when Lance woke up that he wanted to see Keith or something.” 

“And it took you like exactly one visit to drop formalities.” Lance shook his head, but he smiled a little. “Hey, Pidge bet you that you won’t eat the soap this time.”

“I am not going down to the medic bay like you just to get glared at.” Pidge went back to typing away at her console. Hunk was beside himself in laughter, thick arms wrapped around his stomach to ease the cramps that came with too much laughter. 

“You heard Pidge, off to go see Shiro!” Lance pushed at Keith before the other could ask what had happened. Keith’s brows were furrowed, and he allowed himself to be pushed to the door and out before finally walking on his own. 

“What happened with the soap, blue prince?” Lotor seemed to have no concept of personal space, crowding Lance as soon as the door was shut behind Keith. Lance walked away from Lotor, only to have the prince follow him with glee. 

“Blue prince? That’s a new one.” Lance muttered more to himself as he sat down next to Hunk. Lotor flicked the edge of Lance’s sleeve, which was a dark, faded blue. 

“Pidge and Lance somehow got into it about soap. Lance took a bite of the soap and then was worried it was toxic and we went to the medics just to have her show us where it said ‘nontoxic’ on the wrapper.” Hunk explained. “Though it wouldn’t have been the first time they have eaten something toxic.”

“Dude,” Lance started, “one time you ate a piece of wood because you thought it was edible and then you kept denying that it wasn’t edible because you didn’t want to be seen as wrong and got a splinter in your tongue.” 

“That time doesn’t count.” Hunk said stubbornly, completely confident. 

“How does it not count?” Pidge chimed in. “It was a piece of wood. In the shape of a crown but still.”

“Lance ate soap in the shape of a flower and one time Pidge you ate expired yogurt because you actually didn’t think food expired.” Hunk called them out easily. “I think I’m good.”

“You three are a strange bunch.” Lotor chimed in, reminding the trio of his presence. Hunk looked ashamed, Pidge didn’t even seem to care, and Lance just rolled his eyes at the prince. 

“I’m getting breakfast. Anyone want anything while I’m down there?” Lance looked over at Lotor, but the prince seemed enraptured by a puzzle that Hunk had pulled out to solve. “I better not hear any complaining later about how you’re hungry.”

No response, but it wasn’t like Lance was expecting any. The palace was surprisingly quiet despite the activities that had just transpired outside its walls, leaving Lance to his thoughts as he made his way through the halls and into the kitchen. 

Assorted fruit became his breakfast, a mix of brightly colored grapes, an orange, and an apple. Lance stuck as much as he could into the pockets of his pants, making his way back to the main room where Pidge and Hunk were. Hopefully, they wouldn’t try to steal his breakfast when he appeared with it. 

Rounding a corner, Lance stopped, almost stopping his breathing completely as he tried to listen. There was a quiet murmuring coming from the walls, almost like the constant roar of the waves beating against the shore, steady and constant. Lance almost wrote it off as his own blood rushing in his ears, but when he took a step, the murmuring of voices became louder, allowing him to follow it to the source.

Lance found himself pressed against a solid door, pressing his ear to the wood to try to hear more. He was reminded of being a child sneaking around, trying to listen in on grown up conversations without being caught.

“...this is not what we had planned.” Shiro’s voice, as strong as ever, came through the door. Lance could see him in his mind's eye, arms crossed over his chest and brows furrowed.

“You can’t really plan for what happened, Shiro.” Allura’s voice was softer, Lance had to almost press himself flat against the door to hear her. “We can find out how this happened, the Blade does well on missions.”

“I can go and talk to them.” Keith’s voice was louder, Lance suddenly had an image in his mind of Keith giving out orders to an army. The prince was fiery and passionate, Lance thought he would do well in the heat of battle.

“That’s a good idea, the Blade values your opinion.” Shiro sighed, a heavy thing that seemed to come from his soul. “This is exhausting.”

“I’ll talk to the Blade about other ways I can help,”  Keith said quickly, like he was hoping to be heard. Lance wanted to burst into the room and ask a million questions. How long had Keith worked with the Blade of Mamora? They were almost unheard of when it came to accepting new members, and almost nothing was known about their activities.

“You will not,” Allura spoke up, her voice was louder as her emotion seeped into it. “Your opinion will be welcome by the Blade but we need you here.”

“Just one mission.” Keith seemed to beg. Lance could see him easily, brows furrowed and mouth drawn into a harsh line. 

“One mission will become five and then we won’t see you for months.” Shiro chimed in. Something clattered, Lance looked down to make sure no fruit had fallen out of his pockets. It must have been something on the other side of the door.

“I’ll be back in a week,” Keith argued. Lance didn’t dare to inhale as silence suddenly wrapped around the room like a blanket. 

“Keith, if this is truly what you want, then go,” Allura said. Even though the words were harsh, the way she said them were kind. Lance pressed his fingers against his mouth, refusing to allow a sound to pass.

“Really?” Keith tentatively asked. 

“Yes,” Allura replied. “You can go and work with the Blade for as long as you want. Help them out in their missions, do what needs to be done, whatever is needed.”

“Thank you, Allura.” Keith’s voice was so sincere, surprisingly soft. 

“If it’s that important to you, Keith. Just tell make sure you plan to be gone for a while.” Allura paused for a second. “You know, make plans, set up a training regimen for the guards—”

“I can do all that, Allura, I’ve done it before.”

“—tell Lance how long you’ll be gone for, everything that you need to do.”

Lance found himself biting harshly on his fingers, pulling back when he tasted blood. Blood beaded at the base of his nails, dripping down the tips of his fingers and landing on the floor. Lance shoved his hand into his pocket, darting away from the room as quickly and quietly as he could. 

His chest felt heavy, like a weight had suddenly pressed down upon his lungs and made it hard for him to take his next breath. He found himself back in the main room, Pidge showing Lotor something on her tablet, Hunk snoring in his chair. 

“Hey, Lance.” Pidge looked over at Lance when he entered. Lotor continued to frown at the screen, poking at the image. “Lotor’s never heard of memes.”

“No way.” Lance laughed, trying to ease the feeling in his chest, but it wouldn’t go away. It settled deep in his heart, a weight that refused to leave. It was so  _ stupid,  _ how upset he was over all of this, when really it shouldn’t even matter. A pretend marriage for the sake of the kingdom. Lance wouldn’t let himself be the one feeling unrequited love.

“Really, look at this.” Pidge, if she noticed anything was wrong, didn’t say anything, showing Lance what she was showing Lotor. 

“I do not understand this.” Lotor chimed up. “I do not understand the point of this image. Why is it all the same two lines in four panels.”

“That’s loss, man,” Lance said between giggles. “Oh my god I can’t believe you don’t know any of this.”

Lotor all but pouted, and together they looked at memes that Pidge found online until Keith returned. Keith didn’t say anything to Lance, only looking at him for a moment, before revealing that he also knew nothing on the matter of memes. Lance wondered how long it would take to teach Keith all he needed to know about memes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [Hey, check out my tumblr for more stuff :D](oilux.tumblr.com)


	15. New knowledge

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, so I realized I hadn't updated this in forever...sorry about that. Here, have three chapters all updated in the same day.

The morning air was bitter and cold, the kind that stuck to the skin and allowed the chill to seep into his bones. Lance wrapped his arms around his middle, breathing out a breath of air just to see the fog of it float in front of his face. There was no reason for him to be out, and yet here he was, watching the early morning dawn. The first drops of dew sparkled on the ground as the light shone upon them, like the stars had switched places in the sky as the dawn approached.

It wasn’t often he was up this early, but sleep had eluded him even as he laid in bed for hours and lying in bed was so boring that Lance couldn’t stand it another minute.

“You’re up rather early, young prince.” Coran managed to do as he always did, appearing where he was needed. He was dressed for a council, a decorative outfit that Lance had only ever seen when Coran was going to a meeting he didn’t want to go to. Lance scoffed lightly, moving over to the fountain that hadn’t been turned on just yet, staring at the stone formation of two lovers embracing on top of a delicate lilypad. The stone was worn with age, cracks could be seen running down the faces of the two lovers.

“It’s not that early.” Lance defended, reaching down to brush his fingers over the surface of the water. Coran wasn’t someone he had dealt with a lot, but the older man had been nothing but kind and willing to listen to any of Lance’s complaints. 

“What bothers you?” Coran asked, coming up to be near Lance, but not sitting down next to him just yet. “You can tell me.”

“It’s nothing.” Lance defended, looking down at the water. It was stale, stagnant, but when he dipped his fingers into it the surface it rippled and sent small little waves further along.

“It can’t truly be nothing if it’s getting you so upset.” Coran finally moved and sat down next to Lance. “I’m always good for a little story, anything that gets me out of this newest meeting Allura has set up for me.”

“Who’s it with?” Lance asked, taking the conversation off himself. Coran chuckled a little looking at him knowingly but still letting him have the conversation change.

“A friend from the Rigeus district who wants to set up trade with Voltron.” Coran shifted a little to be more comfortable on the stone. “But that’s not nearly as important as what’s bothering you, young prince.”

“Don’t call me that,” Lance stated, voice falling flat. It felt wrong that he should have such a title. Coran’s orange brow arched a bit high on his head, mustache twitching as he considered his words. 

“Why not? Is it not the title that you’ve acquired in your time here?” Coran asked as he looked over Lance, who shrugged.

“Keith and I are just engaged, I’m not really a prince.” Lance didn’t think he ever would be either if Keith left.

“Well, neither is Keith, is he?” Coran looked the other over carefully as Lance looked at him in surprise. “I trust Keith has told you about his past?”

“He has.” Lance dipped his fingers into the cold water again. It was starting to turn his fingers numb, but Lance easily ignored it.

“Even if you and Keith weren’t engaged, I do think you’ve rightfully earned the title with how you acted when we were first attacked,” Coran said softly, honestly. “Do not think that for a second that you haven’t rightfully earned your place here.”

“Thanks, Coran,” Lance said softly. Awkwardly, he refused to look at the older man, knowing what was to come next.

“So, what has you so upset, Lance?” Coran playfully nudged his shoulder, almost hard enough to send him face first into the fountain.

“It’s stupid.” Lance tried, but Coran just looked at him expectantly. “Fine, but don’t say I didn’t say it was stupid. It’s just...I heard Keith was going to leave.”

“Ah.” Coran nodded, in the wise way that only the people who had been through a lot could do. “Keith told you that?” Coran asked, Lance shook his head. “He didn’t?”

“I might have overheard it,” Lance answered sheepishly. Coran laughed a little at the admission. “Is he really going to leave?”

“As far as I’ve heard, yes,” Coran said honestly. “Perhaps though, you should wait until he tells you so himself.”

“I know.” Lance threw his head back with a groan. “He’s stupid and irrational and always doing something without telling me, but I don’t want him to go.”

“Have you told Keith all that?” Coran asked. Lance stayed quiet, harshly tapping his fingers against the surface of the water. “Nothing good comes of keeping things to yourself.”

“But Keith doesn’t tell me anything!” Lance shot back, drawing a leg up close to rest against his chest. Coran laughed lightly, like Lance was missing something. 

“My boy, if you really think Keith would tell you something so vital about himself but not share anything about himself, I think you have some thinking to do.” Coran rose, ruffling Lance’s hair as he did. “I’m late for my meeting with the people from Rigeus Seven. Take care, young prince.”

“You too, Coran.” Lance dipped his fingers into the water once more, only to see the ripples that his fingers created on the water. He didn’t hear Coran leave, but he could sense when he was alone again. 

The fountain came on with a spurt of water, showering the forever embracing couple in a mist of cold water. The water dripped down their faces, and an embrace that should have been depicted as tender and sweet suddenly seemed tragic. Lance stepped away, shoving cold fingers into the pocket of his jacket, as the couple forever locked together wept.

* * *

“What the fuck do you want?” Keith snapped, looking down at the map. It was marked in what seemed to be random locations, in a way that hopefully Lotor wouldn’t be able to figure out, but the random marks were placed there for a reason, of all their decoy locations for soldiers and forts. 

“My word, you and that other boy you’ve got yourself engaged to are certainly spitfires, aren’t you?” Lotor leaned against the table, too close to Keith for his liking, leaning his head on his hand. “He’s a delight, isn’t he? Your blue prince.” 

“What do you want, Lotor?” Keith asked again, deciding that if Lotor didn’t reply to him this time with an answer, Keith would just resolve to ignore him. Lotor huffed a laugh, but he almost sounded offended Keith wasn’t giving him the attention he wanted. 

“I merely wanted to ask how it felt, knowing nothing about half of the heritage you came from.” Lotor laughed slightly as Keith glanced at him, but immediately scowled and looked away. “Having another kind of blood run through your veins is nothing to be ashamed of, Keith.”

“If you only came to talk about this, you should leave.” Keith snapped. Talking to Lotor always brought up bad memories that Keith would have preferred to keep buried deep in his mind. 

“You’re so cold to me, my mixed blood prince.” Lotor sighed frantically. To Keith, he always seemed like a character plucked out of a cliche romance novel, sitting near him but not truly real. Keith reached out and poked Lotor’s shoulder to confirm that he was real, or at least in a corporeal form. He was solid and warm underneath Keith’s touch. 

“So forward. Might it be my affections are finally being returned?” Lotor put his hand over where Keith had touched, causing a bright blush to form over Keith’s cheeks. 

“Shut up.” Keith mumbled, trying to turn back to his work. He couldn’t even remember what he was doing before Lotor had shown up. “Go bug someone else.”

“And yet here I am, bothering my favorite prince because I wanted to speak of politics.” Lotor once more leaned his head against his hand, just staring. His golden, amber eyes, the ones that looked of light shining through a bottle of whiskey, stared shamelessly at Keith. 

“Fine.” Keith rolled up the map that he was sure Lotor has stared at. “Five minutes.”

“Oh, I think you’ll want longer than five minutes.” Lotor grinned, a rather sinister looking thing that spoke of misfortune. Keith was once more reminded of a character from a story, this time of the villain who charmed people to their doom. 

“You see,” Lotor began, “I’ve very recently been making leaps and bounds on keeping record of immigration throughout my kingdom, legal and illegal alike. Amazing what people will tell you to save their own hides, but that’s not important at the moment.” Lotor flapped a hand, waving away the memories. “I’ve found some very interesting records of a woman who fled my country, only to return a couple years later. I shan’t give you the details, however, you might want them later, but I do have a picture of her-“

“Is there a point you’re making?” Disquiet, cold and icy as it was, sunk into his stomach like a stone. 

“I thought that would have been obvious by now,” Lotor said dryly, reaching into the pocket of his jacket, pulling something out. A picture, frayed and worn, the back yellowed with age. “Did you want to see her?” 

“See who?” Keith choked out, unable to tear his eyes away from the back of the photo. It had a year stamped on the back of it, the year Keith was born. 

He didn’t want to see her. He didn’t want to see the woman he had vague, faded memories of, of when she held him when he cried over losing his favorite toy, of her back as she walked out of the house for the final time, while his father stared blankly ahead, no longer truly present. He had been so young, and she had just  _ left _ , saying she would be back tomorrow. Looking back on it, with how his father acted, he knew she would never return. He could still remember how with finality the door had closed, breaking off his view of her startling white hair, and that was the last he had ever seen of her. 

“Your mother.” Lotor flicked the picture in his hand. “It's a dated photo, yes, but I have a more recent one as well. She came back a broken woman seeking sanctuary, and we granted it. I could even tell you where she lives.”

“I don’t want to hear it.” Keith snapped; his voice came out like a growl, so menacingly that even Lotor looked surprised by it. “Leave.”

“She’d like to meet you.” Lotor stood, sticking the worn photo into his pocket. Keith’s eyes were glued to it until it vanished from his sight. 

“Leave!” Keith snapped. Lotor raised a hand, slightly bowing his head. Yet he kept that smirk on his face, a condescending one that made it seem like he knew so much more than Keith. 

“Come to visit my kingdom for a month, see her again, maybe realize that being a pretend prince here isn’t all there is in the world. Find out where you came from.” Lotor crossed his arms, Keith was struck by how thin the other looked, like he hadn’t had a proper meal in weeks. “It was nice staying here, but I believe it’s finally time to take my leave.” 

“Good. Don’t come back.” Keith snarled, but his voice was tired, hoarse. He bent his head so his bangs covered his eyes. 

“You’ll see me again,” Lotor promised as he moved to leave. “You shouldn’t waste such great potential. Mixed blood is nothing to be ashamed over, in fact, you’ll find it makes you better than most.” 

Keith didn’t reply, and Lotor finally left him to stew in his own thoughts, of memories he didn’t want to think about again. Keith placed his head on the table, taking deep, shuddering breaths as he fought to calm himself. Memories were a powerful thing, and heartbreak never truly disappears. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Check out my [tumblr](oilux.tumblr.com) for more updates and a certain surprise!


	16. Surprise Guests

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Have another chapter~

It was late at night when a messenger appeared, wrapped completely in dark purple and black clothing, a mask covering her face. She appeared to the palace without a notice from the guards, standing in the entryway as Keith and Lance walked together. Lance had come to a complete stop as he saw the figure, but Keith pulled him forward to meet them. 

“Solanat, it’s been a while.” Keith shook her hand firmly, she reached up to pull her mask off, revealing a sharp, angular face that didn’t fit with the rest of her body that was soft and had a cushion of belly fat. She was lean though, obviously strong, probably stronger than she seemed at first glance. 

“Kogane, it has been. I’ve been sent with a message for you and your brother.” She glanced at Lance, trepidation in her eyes but she didn’t say anything about him. 

“This is Lance, I’m sure you’ve heard of him.” Keith introduced formally, if not a little awkward as he always was. Her eyes sparkled in recognition, shaking Lance’s hand as well. 

“Nice to meet you.” Lance managed out. Everything was happening so fast, it was hard to get the words out. This was the group that Keith wanted to go with, possibly for months. Lance glanced at Keith, but the other refused to meet his gaze. 

“Your intended, of course, we’ve heard of him at the Blade.” She still glanced at Keith before she looked at Lance. “Will he be joining us?” 

“No,” Keith said before Lance could invite himself. Keith looked at Lance, finally, his expression softening ever so slightly. “I’ll brief him later on what happened, let’s go talk to Shiro.”

“Keith, are you sure?” Lance asked, shoving his hands into the pockets of his jeans. Keith nodded silently, the conversation apparently over despite Lance feeling left out of the loop. 

Lance took a step over to Keith, pressing a small but slightly chaste kiss against the others cheek before he pulled back, letting the other begin to walk off. Keith’s cheeks were covered in a blush, he glanced back at Lance but didn’t say anything more, or invite him to come along. Lance stayed there until they were gone, resisting the urge to follow and eavesdrop. 

Lance found Hunk and Pidge where they were most likely to be found recently, messing with the equipment in the castle and ‘upgrading’ it, as they called it. Lance came and sat down heavily next to them, sighing dramatically to get their attention. Pidge snorted at his behavior, but when she glanced at him she did seem to grow concerned. 

“Alright, loverboy Lance,” Pidge teased. “What’s wrong in the world of romance today?” 

“Keith’s leaving,” Lance mumbled. He didn’t even have it in him to react to his favorite nickname like he always did. Pidge frowned, her finger slipping on what she was holding, a mess of wires, Hunk gasped dramatically at her almost ruining their project. 

“Leaving? Where’s he going?” Pidge asked, looking over the project as Hunk helped her fix what she had just messed up. Lance sighed deeply again, shaking his head to try to rid himself of the bag thoughts. They stuck to him like glue though, and refused to leave. 

“He works with the Blade of Mamora, and they want him for a mission.” Lance laid down on the ground, finding it to be much better suited for his low mood. Hunk made a noise of concern, but didn’t urge Lance to rise. They all knew how he could be at times like this. 

“So he’ll be gone for like a week?” Hunk took the finished project from Pidge and set it aside so they could look at it later when they weren’t consoling Lance. 

“He could be gone for  _ months.”  _ Lance threw a hand over his eyes. 

“Could be. Might not though.” Pidge rolled her eyes, Lance’s theatrics having almost no effect on her. “Have you actually talked to Keith about this? Seen if he’s even going to leave?” 

“I heard him talking to Shiro about it. Definitely leaving.” Lance moved his hand just enough to peek out from underneath it. 

“But he hasn’t told you then?” Hunk asked. His legs were folded in front of him, he looked ready to take on whatever problem the world happened to give him next, even if that problem happened to be Lance’s love life. 

“No, I don’t think he’s going to tell me.” Lance sighed and rolled onto his stomach. “It’s not like I could change his mind anyways.” 

“And here I thought Loverboy Lance would do anything for the one he loved.” Pidge snorted in laughter and turned back to her project. “I would have thought for sure that you would come up with some huge, romantic gesture to convince Keith not to leave.”

“That-“ 

“Lance, don’t you dare.”

“-is a  _ great  _ idea.” 

Pidge groaned, pinching the bridge of her nose and looking away from Lance. Hunk seemed absolutely delighted in what he heard, shaking his head and laughing at Lance’s antics. Lance’s mind threw images of everything he had seen in cliche romantic movies, of everything he could possibly do for Keith to make him stay. 

“What’re you gonna do?” Hunk asked excitedly. “Oh, you should do like an airshow! Write in the sky that you like him.” 

“No, that’s not right.” Lance rejected almost every idea that his mind came up with, trying to figure out what would work best for Keith. Keith didn’t seem all about showing off and big shows. 

“What is right then?” Pidge asked, irritation seeping into her voice. She wanted to focus on her project but Lance kept distracting her, it was annoying to say the least. 

“Something smaller.” Lance didn’t elaborate and no one asked him to. He wouldn’t have even if they had asked. This was something private and meant to be kept to themselves. Lance would get a chance to show off his great romantic abilities later, for now, he would keep his secrets.

* * *

“The Blade is in desperate need of competent members. After losing Regris and Thace, some of our other members have chosen to leave the Blade instead of staying with us.” Solanat kept her head bowed as she addressed Shiro, Allura, and Keith. Keith crossed his arms over his chest, leaning back against the wall. 

“I thought your motto was ‘knowledge or death,’ does that no longer apply to the Blade of Mamora?” Allura asked, voice as soft as ever. Keith winced, while Solanat’s remained impassive. 

“They have made their decision. When the pursuit of knowledge is no longer a priority, the members of the Blade know what it means.” She glanced at Keith. It had been a while since he had been on a mission of any kind with them. Whispers were no doubt starting among the other members. 

“Oh, I see.” Allura glanced at Keith. She didn’t say anything, but they all knew what each other was thinking. Knowledge or death. “Perhaps that is why you have such a hard time with members, such a life goal is hard to commit to.”

“The members are aware when they sign up,” Solanat said without hesitation, irritation barely seeping into her voice. “To die in the pursuit of knowledge is the highest honor that the Blade can provide.”

“Of course, we know that.” Shiro glanced at Keith, but Keith stubbornly looked away from his brother. “What do we owe the honor of your visit from? Is there something you need from us?” 

“I have simply come to check on young Kogane and see if he will be joining us for the next mission. His last message to the Blade implied that he would be joining us. If so, it would be good for him to come with us.” 

“How long is the mission?” Keith piped up, speaking for the first time since they all met together. Solanat looked at him, surprised, but didn’t make a comment on that.

“Only six months.” She said softly. “At least six months at least. We’ll be done before you know it. You’ve been on shorter missions before.”

“What do you even need me for? It seems like you just need bodies.” Keith didn’t mean to sound as bitter as he did, but it came out that way. Solanat blinked in surprise, not really expecting the remark. 

“We’re infiltrating a part of the Galra army, and to sneak in we need someone with skills and such to have the mission go smoothly,” Solanat explained as she glanced at Keith again. “Even though you have let your emotions get in control of you in the past, we believe that you are the right person for this mission.” 

“More important matters keep me here,” Keith said, with such conviction that he surprised even himself. “I’m sorry, but duty calls me here, not out there.”

Solanat looked surprised, but didn’t say anything, choosing instead to shrug helplessly. It wouldn’t go over well when she returned, but others would be willing to take his place and the Blade would survive without him. Solanat moved her hand, and the black mask appeared once more. 

“I’ll inform the Blade of this. Hopefully, we will see you for a mission soon, Kogane.” With one last passing bow towards Shiro and Allura, Solanat disappeared out the window, getting strange looks from the trio but none of them saying anything about it. 

“I’m sure they’ll be fine without you.” Shiro reassured Keith, who only nodded. “Lance will be happy to know you’re not leaving.”

“Lance doesn’t need to know anything about this.” Keith returned evenly. There was a slight rush of adrenaline in his chest from telling Solanat no, but otherwise, he didn’t feel any different. 

“Keeping secrets from each other won’t cause anything but harm.” Allura stood from her throne, going to hug Keith tightly, despite the way he automatically stiffened in her arms at the contact. 

“I know.” Keith pulled back from her. “I’ll tell him on my own. I’m going to go train.” 

Neither Shiro or Allura made a move to stop Keith, and he was thankful for it. He needed the extra time to think, and during his training was the best time to do that. He would think this over, and everything would work out. Keith just had to convince himself of that.  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't forget to check out my [tumblr](oilux.tumblr.com) for more things!


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